Painfull Past
by AwesomeRedVampire
Summary: Vancha and his assistant Amber must find the humans that wronged Amber in the past. But what they find along the way is more than just vengance. Vancha and OC. Please read and review.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in this story except for my OC, everything else belongs to Darren Shan, the ture master of horror.**

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**Chapter 1**

"Please, Vancha?" I asked following him down the hall.

"No," he replied. He was walking in front of me at a fast pace, trying to lose me.

"Why not? You're always saying that I have to prove myself. How can I prove myself if I'm stuck in a mountain?"

"Because I said no Amber, that's why."

"I could just follow you, you know."

He stopped and turned to face me.

"Look, I know that I told you that you have to prove your self, but the other Princes and I agree that you're just not ready yet."

That got me really mad. "How do you even know what I'm capable of? You've never seen me train!"

That got more then just his attention. The other vampires in the hall stopped to watch us. This would be a great show for them to see, not only was I one of the few female vampires but I was also Vancha's assistant. Hooray for me.

Vancha looked at me, confused. "Of course I know what you've been doing," he said slowly "I know how you're training's been going."

"But do you know that they are having me fight not only full-vampires, but Generals too? I think that I can handle myself."

"Would that be Generals-in-training or certified Generals?"

"Certified Generals. Didn't know that did ya?"

"Why are you fighting Generals?"

"They said that it was one of the fastest ways to prove that you're tough and that you can protect your self."

"'They' being, who?"

"Some of the Generals and Trainers."

"Those idiots," he muttered starting to walk away.

"And what about-"

"You're still staying." He said cutting me off.

"Why the hell should I?" I shouted

I shouted a little louder then I had meant to, but I got him to come a complete halt anyway. I hardly ever shouted and it took him by surprise. It shocked everyone in the hall too. No one ever shouted at a prince without a punishment if they didn't apologize quickly. I heard some of them mutter but I didn't pay any attention to anything that was said.

"I've been stuck in this mountain for 20 years! I've been training almost non-stop for 20 years! I've been fighting Generals for 15 years! I think that I can handle anything just fine! Besides that, how can I really test myself if I'm stuck here? How do I know if I can stand up to a human that wants to kill me? Humans can be more cunning then a vampire when they want to be." The vampires around me were gaping at me. If this had been any of the other princes I'd be killed on the spot. Vancha was at a lost for words. He tried to say something but I cut him off. "Besides that, you promised that the next time you were going to leave you would talk me with you. Whatever happened to 'Vancha March never goes back on his word?'''

Now the others were looking at Vancha. That was a common promise that he often made to others. When he promised something he gives his word. It was that important to him. That might have been because he had been a vampaneze before becoming a vampire and when the vampaneze give their word they go through with it, even if it kills them.

Everyone was waiting for Vancha's response, but he still said nothing. He just stood there looking like he was trying to say something to save face, but he just couldn't. I could tell that he was thinking about just walking away, but I stopped him by saying, "I can't believe what a liar you are. I always though that you were better then this," I turned to walk back the way we had come. "Have fun doing whatever." I said then I started to walk away. I was trying to leave before I started to cry and everyone started to laugh at me.

"Amber, wait!" Vancha was trying to plead with me but I just shook my head and continued to walk. I heard him run after me, but I wasn't in the mood to talk anymore. He grabbed my arm to try to stop me, but I'd had enough. "Let me go!" I yelled and I couldn't stop myself as me hand raised and I swung around.

**SLAP!**

The sound traveled down the tunnel and the vampires grimaced. Either it was from the slap or because what I had just done was so stupid, I don't know. What I do know was that I was released instantly and I ran as fast as I could. Running for my cell as the tears started to fall.

To be continued

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**Thus ends chapter 1. More to come. Please read and review.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters except for my OC Everything else belongs to Darren Shan the true master of horror.**

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**Chapter 2**

**SLAP!**

Vancha couldn't believe what had just happened. He had just been slapped! And to make things worse it slightly hurt. He had his hand pressed against his cheek as he watched his assistant as she ran down the hall.

"You should have stopped her," said a voice from behind. Turning, Vancha saw Larten as he walked up.

"No, she was right. I did promise her. I deserved what I got, but you know that."

"Do I now?" Larten said innocently

"Yeah, you were standing there the whole time."

Larten grinned slightly "You are right that I was here," he lost the grin, "But she is also right when she says that she has been here for too long. It is fine that she has trained here and learned a lot, but she needs to be out of the mountain to really test herself."

"You know, you sound more like a prince than I do." Vancha pouted.

"I think that the other princes only agreed with you because that is what you wanted to hear, but not what was best for her." Larten said ignoring the comment.

"You might be right about this. But how do you know so much about her?"

"She has to talk to someone when you are not around for her. She talks to Arra and I all the time. She made us promise that we would not tell you, but this is something that you need to know."

They started to walk from the others. They made their way to the hall of Khledon Lurt.

"I want to be there for her more than I am, but I'm in a difficult position right now."

"I know that you are. You are a prince, and therefore must put the needs of the clan before your own. But you are also a mentor and must think of your assistant. You need to do what you think is best not only for the clan, but for her too. She needs you more than the clan right now."

They entered the hall and saw that it was empty. They sat at a table in the far corner.

Vancha considered Larten's words carefully and sighed, "I guess that being here for too long is bad for the both of us. But I really don't want her to go with me right now."

"Why? What has disturbed you so much? You do not really get troubled by much." Larten asked.

Vancha sighed again. "I got news of a group of humans that have terrorized many towns and killed hundreds. They've killed at least 5 vampires also."

"But what does this have to do with you? They are just humans."

"They might just be humans, but they are the ones that killed Amber's family."

"If that is true, do you not think that she would want to go with you? It would be better. Think of how she would feel if she found out that you killed the people that took her family from her. She would hate you instead."

"Why would she do that?" Vancha asked

"Because you took the one thing that she wanted. Vengeance. She has probably been hoping to leave the mountain and look for those who have wronged her."

"I'm not worried about that." Vancha answered.

"Then what are you really afraid of?" Larten asked.

"I'm afraid that she'll lose control and continue to kill, regardless of what anyone says to her. That she'll be filled with so much hatred that she'll continue to kill the humans and will lead us to a war with them. We can't have that. Not now, not ever."

"She is not like that."

"How can you be sure?"

"Because I have seen her train. And so has Arra. She has be in situations that looked like she was going to kill someone and she stopped right when someone said something to her. She is not the type to just kill like that."

Vancha said nothing. He was deep in thought.

"You should at least tell her where you are going. Let her decide whether she wants to go with you. That way she knows what you are doing and will not worry about you."

"She won't worry about me." Vancha said quietly.

"Then you do not know how she truly feels about you. The first test she passed, she looked for you, but you were not there. When she discovered that, her passing meant nothing to her, even though everyone was congratulating her. And she said that you never said anything to her."

"I wanted to say something to her. I really did. But I couldn't get away from the Hall."

"She could be praised by the Gods themselves, and she would not notice unless you were there to see it. You are the only one she wants to see how much she has grown. She wants you to see that she is not a child anymore. That might be the only reason she trains as hard as she does."

"Every assistant wants to please their master. It's a common thing for us."

"But not every assistant is with their master for as long she has been with you. You have said that the two of you have been together since she was a little child. She wants you to see that she is not the child you rescued from death, but as a vampire that can do anything that she puts her mind to and that she can protect herself now," Larten explained.

"If she really feels that strongly, then why has she stayed for as long as she has? She could have left at any time."

"She wants you to see how much she has changed, but that is hard to do if you are still here and she is not."

Vancha sat quietly for some time thinking. He didn't know what to do and he was fighting conflicting feelings and thoughts. He was trying to think of anything when Larten said, "Why do you not take her outside for a while? That way you can see if you really want her to come with you for your mission. That way, if she cannot do what she thinks she can, she can always come back here."

"That's a great idea. Why didn't I think of it?"

"It must have been to complex for your brain to handle," Larten smirked.

"I'll pretend that I didn't hear that. But I want you to come with us."

"Why? Do you think that there will be that much trouble?"

"There might be that much trouble with Amber. I think that even if she comes with she'll be mad at me for a while and won't talk. Besides, she really trusts you, seeing that you were the first vampire that she talked to when we came here."

"I was not the first. You met with the other princes before you talked to me."

"I talked to the princes. She wouldn't. You were the first that she openly talked to. Amber didn't even talk to Seba until after she talked to you."

"Vary well. I will accompany you. If things do not work I could always take her to the Cirque for a while, while you go off. She may find some friends there that are her own age."

Vancha nodded and the two vampires got up and left the hall. As they started to walk toward the sleeping chambers, Vancha was filled with a feeling for dread. Like something wasn't right. When they got to Amber's room, they entered and saw that the room had been stripped clean of cloths and personal things that had been picked up on the multiple journeys.

To be continued

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**Please review and tell me if there is anything that can make the story better or if you think that some changes need to be made. Criticusm is a must.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I own nothing except for my OC the others belong to Darren Shan the true master of horror**

**Chapter 3**

I ran back to my room as fast as I could. I tripped multiple times because my tears had made seeing difficult. When I finally made it back, I fell on the floor and cried for a long time. I cried for multiple reasons. I cried because Vancha still thought that I was a little kid that needed constant protecting, one that couldn't do anything right. I cried for the fact that I would never leave the mountain until I was old enough to do so by myself. But more importantly I cried because I was scared. I had slapped Vancha. It might have been fine if it had been any other vampire, they might have even hit back. But Vancha is a prince. I could be killed for doing that.

I was laying on the floor for a long time when I made up my mind that I would leave the mountain and never return. I would be found eventually but there could be nothing that the clan would do to me. If I was away from the mountain they couldn't hurt me. I would just be an ordinary vampire. I might have the training to be a General, but let's face it; I was a child who was scared and desperate.

I got up and rubbed my eyes with a shirt sleeve. I found my bag and started to put clothes into it. I had thought about leaving a weapon behind for Vancha to have but that would have been pointless. Vancha didn't use any weapons except for his shurikans or his bare hands. I took my sword and put it in the sheath that strapped to my back. The last thing that I grabbed was a single small box. The box contained the many small things that Vancha had gotten for me over the years.

I looked around the cell one last time to see if there was anything I missed. There wasn't. I looked around outside to see if there were any vampires around. There weren't. This could be a good sign. I walked through the halls as fast as I could without making too much noise. I made it to the main exit tunnel and there was no one to be seen. I took one last look around the mountain and hiked my bag up higher on my shoulders. I took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. I started walking down the tunnels leading to the outside world.

It took a few hours to find my way out. I stopped by the cave entrance and stared out in wonder. It was hard to believe that just the sight of the snow was a wonderful thing. It was hard to believe that I had forgotten what the snow looked like. Everything was just so white. It was a little cold out, but the good thing was that the sun was coming up. If someone were to follow me out here, then the sun would stop them, which was good for me. It meant that I would have a head start. I slowly breathed in the cold crisp air. It was an amazing thing after 20 years. I was relaxing already.

I walked out into the rising sun and carefully made my way down the mountain. I glanced at the clouds as I descended. The sky was lit with reds, pinks, and even some slight purples. I smiled at all the colors that were around me. The snow might be a problem later when the sun was higher, but I wasn't that worried about that now. Snow, and ice, can be laminated by the sunlight and cause people to go blind, hence where the term snow-blind came from.

After a while the ground started to level out and I decided that I wanted to run for a while to test my speed over the unsteady land. As I preparing to do so, I caught sight of a lone wolf that was heading in the same direction that I was. I loved wolfs, even has a small human child. I smiled as a memory came to me.

_I was about 8 years-old at the time, right before I lost everything. I had been playing in the woods near my house. I was always in the trees and playing in the dirt. I was always by my self because I was an only child and the other children of the village thought that I was weird. I had been told by the others that girls didn't play in the dirt; they played with dolls and their mother's jewelry. I had tried to play with a doll but got bored with it within minutes. I ended up giving the doll to some little kid that had a family that barely had enough to clothe the poor kids, let alone feed them. I had been out in the woods for hours playing in the trees and the nearby stream, when I heard something coming towards me. I turned and saw that there was a wolf just a little ways from the other side of the stream. It was by the tree line, trying to stay away from me. I got out of the stream and stared at the wolf for a long time._

_There was more rustling in a small bush behind the wolf and a small cub came out. Wolfs were nothing new around here, but few of us wandered this deep into the woods like I did. I looked at the cub and it looked back at me. The mother must have decided that I wasn't going to harm them because she went to the streams edge and took a quick drink. She then watched the cub do the same. I sat for a long time watching them. This was the closest anyone had been to a wolf in a long time. Many who were this close were the ones who got attacked by them or they would run at the sight of the wolf and alert the others in the village, then sometime later the carcass would be displayed in the center of the village._

_I knew that wolfs can smell the fear of others but I felt none and couldn't understand why others were afraid of them. The cub was just as curious about me and it tried to cross the stream to get to me. The stream wasn't very wide but it was deep in some parts. I got up slowly and got closer to them. The mother was alert about what I was doing but didn't act. I got closer to the bank and got into the stream. The water was a little cold but I had been in colder._

_I slowly walked across with my hands out in front of me letting them get my scent. The mother sniffed the air, cautious about what I was doing. I got to the other side and held my hand out to the cub. I saw that it was a little male. He sniffed my hand then barked and wagged his tail. The mother came over to me and sniffed me as well. She sniffed me all over and I let her._

_After a while she decided that I was safe and walked away a little and laid down in the grass. I turned my attention back to the cub and held my hand out again and he got closer to me and put his head under my hand. I petted and played with that cub for a long time. I wanted to stay there with the wolfs, they really weren't as bad as people made them sound. From the stories, wolfs were man killers who didn't think twice about killing even a child._

_I soon heard my mother calling me. As soon as the echoes of her voice faded the wolfs started to leave. The cub really didn't want to leave. He kept looking back at me with sad eyes. "I'll come back here tomorrow." I told him. He barked in reply and wagged his tail. He left with his mother happily. I kept my promise to him and returned the next day. I kept returning to that spot for months. The cub grew into an adult. He became my friend and he would protect me in the woods and I would give him some small treats from home in return. We were so happy together. I probably would have brought him home with me if I could have. And the one day that I was going to do it, everything changed._

_I was at home getting ready to go into the woods when someone screamed. I ran outside and saw that everyone was gathered in the center on the village. I ran over to everyone and heard someone say something that made my stop cold. "This is the first time a wolf has been dumb enough to come here." I pushed my way through the crowd. In the center of the ring was my wolf. He was growling at everyone trying to find a way to escape. He was scared. Someone raised a gun and pointed it at him. My heart stopped and I was finally able to brake free of everyone. "Stop! Leave him alone!" I shouted running for the wolf. He saw me and barked his normal greeting at me. I was almost to him when the gun went off. I stopped and watch my wolf as he fell. It was like he fell in slow motion. When he finally hit the ground, his blood started to pool around him. He had a snarl, showing that he wasn't afraid of the death that had suddenly taken him. _

_I walked over to him and fell to my knees. I petted the fur around his face and neck as the tears filled my eyes and fell. I turned my head and glared at the man who shot my wolf. He was a traveler who was staying for a few days to visit friends here._

"_Why did you shoot my wolf?" I demanded the tears in my eyes replaced by a cold furry._

"_Because wolfs are a danger to everyone here. There are young children everywhere here like your self." He answered calmly undisturbed by what he did._

"_So that makes it alright! You know nothing about how that wolf was!"_

"_And you did?"_

"_Yes! I did! He was my only friend!" I said feeling the tears fall again._

"_How could you possibility know what these monsters are like? And what do you mean that this was your friend. They are monsters that-"_

"_SHUT UP! I'VE HEARD ENOUGH!" I screamed. I ran at him determined to kill him. I had never thought about killing anything before, but at that moment it was the best idea that I had ever had. I had picked something up off the ground and was about to stab him with it when there were more shouts coming from the egde of the group. _

I stopped myself from remembering what happened next. That was part of my past that I didn't want to relive. I felt something on my cheek and noticed that I was crying again. I quickly wiped the tears away. The wolf had long since gone and I was wasting daylight. I knew that I could continue late into the night, but I wanted to get as much of a head start as I could. There was no telling what was ahead of me.

To be continued.

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**Please read and review, I'm always looking for comments.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters excpet for my OC everyone else belongs to Darren Shan the true master of horror**

**Chapter 4**

It made no sense. Why had Amber left? It wasn't like her to run off like this. Vancha stood in her room looking for any sign that might have been left behind. But there wasn't. The room had been completely cleaned, leaving no evidence that anyone had even been here. Vancha was in a panic, but he had a feeling that she was doing this to get back at him. He knew that she had left the mountain with no intention of ever coming back.

"What do you want to do Vancha?" Larten asked. Vancha had forgotten that he was there.

"We have to go after her. She has no idea what she's doing. These mountains are more dangerous then she knows." He answered.

"Do you want to wait for night or do you want to leave now?"

"By the time we get to the exterior of the mountain, there won't be much sunlight left, so we have to leave now."

Larten nodded and left to gather some things for the trip. Vancha stayed in the room and tried to shake the guilt that was filling him. He knew that if he had just agreed to her coming in the first place, this never would have happened. It was all his fault. He had to find her and make it right. Five minutes later, Larten returned with a bag filled with things that they would need, or things he would need seeing as how Vancha only ate or drank things that were fresh.

"Vancha, we need to leave. She has been gone for a number of hours and if we do not leave now, we will lose her."

Vancha snapped out of his thoughts and said, "It might be difficult to find her seeing as we don't know what direction she went."

They left the chamber and were almost to the gate leading out of the mountain before Larten said, "I think that it will be easy to find her."

"What makes you say that? It could be a real challenge finding her."

"That may be true, but she has never been out of the mountain by herself before, has she?"

Vancha shook his head.

"Then she probably would think that to get to the bottom, all she has to do is walk in a strait line."

"I get it," Vancha grinned. "But by the time we find her, she's going to be pissed."

"More then she already is," Larten stated.

"Yeah," Vancha's shoulders sagged.

"Do not worry. We will find her and then you can explain everything," Larten said placing his hand on Vancha's shoulder. "You never know, she might even understand why you did what you did."

"Somehow I don't think she will."

To be continued.


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters excpt for my OC the others belong to Darren Shan the true master of horror**

**Chapter 5**

"WHO DESIGNED THIS DAMN MOUNTAIN!" I shouted. "I SHOULD HAVE BEEN TO THE BOTTOM BY NOW!" I had figured that by going in a strait line that it would be the quickest way to leave the mountain behind me, but nooo, who ever thought using this place as the vampire base thought it would be funny to see people's reactions when they discovered that going in a strait line would just double back on itself and it take you back to the mountain. "THIS ISN'T FUNNY!"

I kicked a nearby tree and was reworded with a few broken toes and a huge dent.

"DAMN IT!" I shouted and then proceed to add some more curses that would've made a colorful rainbow and would have made someone's ears shrivel.

At least the dent won't be seen from the trail, hopefully. I leaned against the tree and slid down the bark until I was sitting on the ground. I sighed. This was not going well. I looked around for any kind of berry bush so I could eat something.

"I'm so stupid. I should have gone to the kitchen before running out of the mountain. I don't have any food and I pick the one place that has no food to rest at."

I tried to dig for some roots but the ground was frozen solid. I leaned back against the tree and sighed again. I brought my knees to my chest and rested my chin on my knees. _Why did I even run? I never run from anything, so why did I run this time? I've never ran from anything even as a human. I've always faced things head on._

I was lost in thought so I didn't notice the smell until it hit me in the face. Blood. The air was thick with the smell of blood. I jumped up and wincing from the pain in my foot, and went to find what was making that smell. I walked, (hobbled), for half a mile before I found the source. I had to walk through a thick bush but I found the same wolf feeding on a large deer. I have to admit it, it smelled really good.

The wolf looked up at me and growled to say 'this is my kill.' I sat down on the ground and I lay on my back exposing my throat. I had seen wolfs do this before. It symbolizes that you mean no harm. The wolf relaxed and went back to eating and I stayed on my back. I had been closer to wolfs but this one was different from my old wolf. This one was leaner and was a female which is probably why she didn't trust me.

I stayed on my back until she was done eating. I sat up and creped a little closer to her. She growled at me and I stopped and extended my hand towards her. She sniffed my hand and slowly moved closer to smell more of me. She slowly started to relax as she got accustomed to my sent. After she accepted me, she looked from me to the deer and from the deer back to me then she tilted her head. I knew that she was asking me if I wanted any. I walked over to the deer keeping my eye on her to make sure that she wasn't going to leap at me. I got down to the deer and the first thing I did was drink from it. The blood was still warm but it was cooling quickly. I drank as much as I could, not knowing when I would be able to again. After I drank, I ate some of the meat. It tasted a little bitter and stringer then normal but baggers can't be choosers.

I was still keeping an eye on the wolf but she was keeping an eye on me too. It was kind of funny really, and I had to stop and smile. She really reminded me of that mother wolf from all those years ago. I knew that by now she was dead but, I can't help but see the resemblance. After I was done, I wiped my hands in the snow to remove the blood. I picked up some snow and was about to use it to clean the blood off my face when the wolf walked up to me.

We were eye to eye because I was sitting on the ground. After a while she started to lick my face clean. I was shocked at first. Her tongue was wet and warm, but also very soft. But that wasn't the only warm wet thing on my face. I realized that I was crying. When she was done cleaning my face she laid beside me, her body heat warming my side. I reached over and petted and stroked her head. I had to be careful because my nails were very long and I didn't want to cut her.

I had to think of a name for her. As I looked at her I decided that I was going to call her 'Snow' because she was as white as the snow around her.

"I'm going to call you Snow, alright?" I asked. Most would think that I was crazy talking to a wolf, but I knew that wolf listen to everything around them, even humans. She looked at me and wagged her tail. I took it as a sign of acceptance.

"Snow it is then. My name is Amber."

Again she wagged her tail and she licked my hand. I smiled at her. It was great to have a wolf again, even if it was only temporary.


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters except for my OC the others belong to Darren Shan the true master of horror**

**Chapter 6**

Vancha and Larten had made their way out of the mountain and were currently looking for signs that showed which way Amber had gone. It would have been easy if it hadn't started to snow heavily and if the wind would chose one direction to blow in. The wind was blowing in every direction making it hard to locate any specific sent. The two vampires were running through the snow trying to find any indication that Amber had been here. So far they had found nothing.

"This is ridiculous! It's like something doesn't want us to find her!" Vancha shouted over the wind.

"Calm down Vancha. We will find her. It will just take some time." Larten said.

"That's easy for you to say. Something could have happened to her already."

"Calm down. Panicking is not going to help right now."

"I'm not panicking!"

"Yes you are. And if you keep it up, you might miss something important."

"Like what?"

"Like that." Larten said pointing to a tree. Vancha looked where he was pointing.

"There's a dent in the tree, so what?"

"That is not a natural dent. Near here is a path that circles back to the mountain and if Amber followed it, it would have led her back to this spot. She probably kicked the tree in frustration, leaving the dent"

"That makes sense. And if that's true, she can't be too far from here," Vancha said. "Let's go. The sooner we find her the better. The weather is about to get worse. I can smell it."

Larten nodded and together they started off.


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters except for my OC the others belong to Darren Shan the ture master of horror**

**Chapter 7**

Snow and I were resting under a tree. The weather had gotten worse and was fixing to turn into a blizzard. I had tried to find a way station but I didn't know where I was or if there was one anywhere near me. Even with Snow's body heat and thick fur, I was shivering. I was on my side practically hugging Snow, trying to take all the heat I could from her. She didn't seem vary bothered by it either. I felt like I couldn't even breathe. It was like the wind was ripping away my breath. I buried my face into Snow's fur and even though her fur didn't taste good I could at least breathe.

After what felt like an eternity, the blizzard finally stopped and was replaced by lightly falling snow. Snow and I got up and shook the snow from our bodies. We were getting ready to leave when Snow started growling at something.

"What's the matter Snow? What's coming for us?"

Her growl deepened and her hair was starting to stand on end. I was confused until I heard a blood curdling roar that was coming right at us. I was trying to think of an animal that makes that noise when I saw the blur black fur. At first I thought it was another wolf, and then I got a better look at it and saw that it was a bear. _This isn't good. This isn't good at all! It's coming to kill us! _I thought in a slight panic.

I got ready to fight. I went for my sword but the bear was on me to fast. I didn't have time to think as it bit my arm snapping the bone in as instant. I screamed with pain. The bear let go as Snow bit into the bears shoulder. As the bear was dealing with Snow, I grabbed my sword with my other hand, silently grateful that I knew how to fight with one hand or another. I slashed at the bear cutting it in the side. The bear forgot about Snow and focused on me. The bear swung around and swiped at me with its claws. They connected with my stomach and left four gashes. Blood pored out and hit the snow beneath me, turning it crimson instantly. I fell to the ground trying to stop the blood.

Snow jumped on the bear and bit into its ear. The bear roared and shook its head wildly. Snow hung on until the bear hit her with its claws. She yelped and flew off the bear and hit a tree. She fell to the ground and struggled to get up but she was whimpering. The bear was satisfied that she wouldn't get up again and turned its attention back to me.


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters except for my OC the rest belong to Darren Shan the ture master of horror**

**Chapter 8**

Larten and Vancha had been running until they heard the bear bellow. They stopped and shared a concern look.

"That can't be good. I've never heard a bear bellow like that."

"Hopefully it is not near-"

He was cut off by a scream. They both jumped and took off running as fast as they could without hitting flitting speed, but close to it. After a while the smell of blood was thick in the air.

"That is not just the bear's blood, it is hers as well." Larten shouted. Vancha paled and forced himself to move a little faster.

They reached the area where the fight was and saw Amber on the ground covered in blood with a mad bear coming at her ready to kill. She had a look of absolute terror on her face.

"Amber!"


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters excpet for my OC the others belong to Darren Shan the true master of horror**

* * *

**Chapter 9 **

"Amber!"

I heard my name and looked around until I saw him.

Vancha.

I saw the rage in his eyes and hoped it wasn't directed at me. The bear bellowed again and I looked back to it. It was running at me and I could no longer move. I had lost my sword at some point and I couldn't find it. The bear was almost on top of my when I saw something jump in front of me.

"Vancha," I said.

"Larten, get her out of here!"

I felt Larten pick me up but I was watching Vancha fight the bear. The bear bellowed at Vancha and he responded by sinking his hands into the bear's stomach and its heart at the same time. When he pulled his hand out, he brought all the bears guts with it. As the bear fell Vancha slashed its throat. The bear hit the ground and twitched twice then fell still.

Vancha stood panting slightly. I was still in Larten's arms.

"Please put me down Larten." I said

He looked at me then and at my stomach. I could tell that he thought that it was a bad idea but he put me down. I wavered on my feet a little but I walked over to Vancha.

"Vancha?"

He looked at me. The rage in his eyes was gone and had been replaced by relief, until he saw my stomach and all the blood on the ground. He also saw my arm. His eyes were instantly filled with panic.

"You shouldn't be standing. You're losing too much blood."

"I'm fine for-"

"No you're not. I can see the pain you're in." He walked over to me and led me over to a tree to lean on, that's when I remembered something.

"I can't lie down, I have to find Snow."

"Snow?" they both looked confused.

I tried to stand up but I almost fell over. Vancha caught me and leaned me back against the tree. The pain was too intense and I was about to black out do to blood loss.

"Snow," I called "Snow, where are you?"

I heard her whimper lightly. Vancha and Larten looked at each other still confused. Larten went over to where the whimper came from.

"There is a wolf over here," he said.

"That's Snow. She protected me from the bear." I explained as Vancha cut away my shirt with his nails. The blood was already freezing to my skin so it left him little choice but to cut the shirt away. I wasn't bothered by it either. I had been around Vancha since I was little and we had seen each other naked many times. Besides nakedness was nothing new to a vampire. As soon as my shirt was off I got hit with a blast of freezing air. I shivered.

Vancha was looking at the claw marks in horror. He quickly applied spit to them and watched them as they healed.

"Maybe we should take her back to the mountain. That way someone can watch her as she heals." Larten suggested.

"I'm fine." I said in a weak voice, which didn't sound that convincing. "How's Snow?"

Larten looked at me to see what my reaction would be, "Unfortunately, she is severely injured and there is nothing we can do to help her, short of putting her out of her misery."

I looked down. I knew what he meant but I really didn't want to do that to her. But there wasn't any other option. I nodded my head and heard Larten walk off. A short time later her blood filled the air. Vancha had moved to working on my arm. I sighed and thought about the past to escape the present. It didn't last long because I was drawn back by Vancha asking me a question.

"I'm sorry, what did you say?" I asked.

"I said why did you run away? You know that doesn't solve anything."

"I don't know why I did. I've never ran from anything. I was wondering that myself." I couldn't even look at him. Vancha finished rapping my arm and gave me a shirt to put on. "I think that I came out here to prove that I could handle things myself. But all I've proven is that I can't do anything but cause problems for others."

"That's not-"

"Yes it is. Don't try to make me feel better. All I did was cause problems for you and Larten and I got Snow killed in the process."

Vancha was quiet for a little bit.

"This is more my fault then it is yours," he said "If I had just told you the truth then this wouldn't have happened."

"What are you talking about? You never lied to me." I said confused.

"I might not have lied out right, but the reason I was leaving the mountain concerns your past."

"What about my past? What are you talking about?" I asked.

Vancha took a deep breath. "The reason I was leaving the mountain is because I've heard reports that a group of humans are going around killing other humans for no reason."

"What dose that have to do with me or my past?"

"They're the humans that killed your parents and everyone in your village," he explained slowly.

At first I didn't say anything, I just sat there.

"Why didn't you tell me?" I whispered.

Vancha sighed and didn't look at me when he answered.

"I really didn't know how you would react to it," he said.

"You didn't think that I could handle it, didn't you?" I said with an edge to my voice.

Vancha grimaced "Like I said, I didn't know how you would react to it."

I pushed myself up off the tree and without looking at Vancha I asked, "What would you have done if I had found out what you were doing afterwards?"

"I really don't know," he said quietly.

I was filled with an instant rage and I had to get away from him before I snapped. I tried to move away from him but I was getting dizzy and I was starting to get short of breath. I had moved a little before I noticed that one my stomach wounds opened back up and it felt like I was getting stabbed. My vision blurred and I felt myself fall forward, falling into darkness.


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters except for my OC the others belong to Darren Shan the true master of horror**

* * *

**Chapter 10**

Vancha dashed forward and caught Amber before she hit the ground. At first he didn't understand why she had passed out, than he realized that one of the claw marks had reopened and she had developed a fever. Amber was very pale and sheens of sweat covered her forehead. Her breaths came in ragged puffs almost if she was having trouble breathing. Vancha was in a panic for the second time that night and that feeling was accompanied with the feeling of uselessness. Vancha was racking his brain for anything he could do short of taking Amber back to the mountain. He knew that Amber was mad enough as it was and if she woke up finding herself back in the mountain he was afraid she would try to run again, which was something he would try to avoid.

Vancha heard Larten walk up behind him but neither of them said anything for a while. Finally Larten asked what Vancha what he wanted to do.

"The only thing I can think of is to find a way station for now and wait and see what happens," Vancha said. "If things take a turn for the worst, we'll take her back to the mountain."

"Are you sure that is what you want to do?" Larten asked. "Are you sure that you would not rather take her the mountain now?"

Vancha shook his head. "I think that we should just find a way station and see what happens."

"All right then," Larten said. "If we are going to do that then we should be going. The nearest way station if about five miles down the mountain and by the way the sky looks and the way the wind smells another blizzard is going to start, and this one is going to be a lot worse than the last one."

Vancha nodded and he rapped Amber's wound as best he could before carefully picking her up and carried her like a baby, as close to him as possible. Larten gave Vancha a weird look but quickly dropped it as Vancha looked at him. Larten was starting to wonder just how close Vancha and Amber really were and if they were more that just master and assistant.

Two hours later the vampires finally made it the way station. They would've gotten there a lot sooner but the weather had changed faster than either of them had thought was possible, even here on the mountain. The way station was deep going back about 35 meters and was about 30 meters wide. It was one of the biggest way stations on the whole mountain. Very few were this size and it held one of the biggest collections of coffins, blood, and almost anything else a vampire could want. It even held medical supplies, complete with bandages and herbs.

There was also a big collection of fire wood and matches in one of the corners and Larten immediately started a fire while Vancha tried to make Amber comfortable. Her fever had risen and she was having more trouble breathing. Vancha looked over his assistant, his panic clear on his face. Larten tried to think of something to tell Vancha, to try to help, but he had no idea about what to do more than Vancha. Vampires by nature don't know how to comfort others, so they both sat in silence listening to Amber breath and the wind howl outside.

Vancha had put Amber on the floor, so that she could be reached easily in the worst case scenario, and had dragged a blanket out of one of the coffins and covered her with it. She seemed to relax as the blanket was put on her, but not by much.

Larten broke the uncomfortable silence.

"She needs to be taken back to the mountain," he said. "This might mot be something we can handle."

"As much as I would like to, I don't think the weather will agree," Vancha said nodding outside. Within the last few minutes the wind had picked up and snow was starting to pile up in front of the entrance. If they didn't keep an eye on it, it was sure to snow them in.

They sat in silence again unsure of what to say. Vancha was thinking and didn't notice that Larten had said something until Larten reached out and touched his arm.

"What?" Vancha asked.

"I was wondering who close you really are to Amber," Larten said.

Vancha was momentarily thrown by the question, unsure of how to answer. It was common knowledge that masters and assistance often got close to one another, but it was different for him and he knew it. The problem was trying to explain it.

To be continued.


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters except for the OC. The others belong to Darren Shan, the true master of horror.**

**Hey, Awsomeredvampire here to tell you that this chapter is all in italics because we finally get a chance to see Ambers life on the day that had haunted her the most. Hope eveyone enjoys. :) Please remember to R&R.**

* * *

**Chapter 11**

_Screams filled the air and everyone turned around to see what was happening. Near the edge of the circle many people were on the ground. Standing next to them were outsiders, a group of men, wielding weapons that were covered in blood that was slowly dripping off and onto the ground. Everyone exploded into a panicked frenzy. Everyone all started to scream, push and shove, cry, curse, and run away all at the same time. I just stood there, swallowed by the panic, completely confused. I felt a hand grab me and pull me backwards. I almost yelled but it wouldn't make much of a difference, no one would've been able to hear me._

_I spun around and saw that the person who had grabbed me was Mama._

"_You need to come with me now Amber," she told me, carefully maneuvering through the people. "You need to hide somewhere safe."_

_She led me back to our house near the outskirts of the village and the forest where I had spent my childhood. I looked back at my wolf one last time and saw that the men had started to slowly make their way to one of the houses and set it on fire. Here in the village the houses were built close together and everyone lived in fear of everything going up in flames. It proved that their fears had become a reality. For once I was glad that our house was far from the others. The men would have to burn our house separately, but it would take them a while to get to our house._

_Mama led me to the back of the house and moved the water barrels out of the way, revealing a secret hiding place. It was more like a hole in the side of the house just big enough for me to get into. I looked from the hole to mama trying to see how we were both going to hide there._

_Mama must have read the look on my face because she shook her head. "There isn't enough room for the both of us. This is only meant for you," she told me._

"_But mama, what about you?" I asked "What are you going to do?"_

"_It doesn't matter what happens to me," she said sadly. "And if anything does happen, you are to stay hidden."_

"_But,-"_

"_But nothing!" she shouted at me. "You will do what I tell you to do!"_

_I had never been yelled at before so I didn't know how to respond. I hung my head and tried to stop the tears from forming._

_Mama got down onto one of her knees and cupped my face in one of her hands, bringing my head up gently until I was looking her in the eyes._

"_I'm sorry baby," she said "But one day you'll understand. I know you will." _

_There was a noise coming from the front of the house and with the fear evident in her eyes, she made me crawl into the hiding place and quickly placed the barrels in their original places but I heard her tell me, "Sometime soon a man will come here and take you with him," I don't think she meant for me to hear the last thing she said but I did. I heard her mutter, "At least I hope he will."_

_There was just enough of a crack between the barrels for me to see out of, whether that was deliberate or not I'll never know. I saw her run for the forest but she was caught before she was halfway there. She was surrounded and couldn't escape._

"_Where's the girl?" one of them asked in the cruelest voice I had ever heard. He was the biggest of them and I knew he was the leader._

_Mama didn't say anything, she just looked at him with no emotion on her face but even from where I was, I could see her fear in both her body and her eyes. She was terrified about what was going to happen, like she knew what they were going to do, even before they knew themselves._

_I wanted nothing more than to go out there and stop them. It was me they were after, not her. I was sure that if I did that, they would leave her alone. But as much as I wanted to, I didn't move. I was afraid, no I was terrified, more afraid than I had ever been in my entire life. I was afraid of what they would do if they caught me, afraid of what they were about to do, but I was more afraid of the fact that mama knew that she was going to die and instead of running to save herself like many of the others, she fought against everyone to get to me, to hide me, in the vain hope that someone would be here to help me. To make sure I was safe and that I survived whatever was to come._

"_I'll ask again," the leader said, "Where's the girl?"_

_Again she said nothing. I could see the fury in their eyes rise. The leader grabbed mama's face sharply "You will tell me where she is or you will regret it," he said through clenched teeth._

_For a moment I thought she was going to answer him. She opened her mouth and spat at him. He responded by punching her in the face. She fell to the ground._

"_You little bitch," he snarled. "You will regret doing that."_

_He grabbed her by the hair and dragged her to a tree. He threw her against it as hard as he could. He nodded at the others and they brought out ropes they had been hiding. They tied her to the tree tightly, almost as if fearing she would escape._

"_Feel like talking yet?" one of them asked._

_Mama nodded and my heart dropped. She really was going to sell me out. I started to move back when I heard her say, "Go to hell. I will never tell you were she is."_

"_You just made the worst possible choice," the leader said. "All you had to do was tell us where she was, then we would've let you live."_

_He looked back at his men. "Do what ever you want to make her talk," he told them._

_The men all grinned. They had been waiting for that order. Now they could do anything and nothing was going to stop them of deprive them of their joy. They unsheathed some swords and slowly advanced. One by one they cut her, either after every question or whenever they wanted. After the first few cuts mama started screaming. I couldn't stand to watch anymore. I was going to go out there and stop them but I remembered what she had told me. 'No matter what happens to me, you are to stay hidden.' Unable to do anything else, I moved further back from the opening._

_The hole was deep, going back about 3 meters. I stayed back there for what seemed like an eternity, but in reality, it was no more than 5 hours. I could hear mama's screams the entire time and because of where I was, the sounds of her suffering echoed all around me. Even after the screaming stopped, I was still haunted by the echoes, but now they were bouncing around in my head not off the walls. I was pressed into a corner as far as I could be trying not to cry, but I lost the battle against my emotions. My body was shaking and tears were falling just as quick as I could wipe them away._

_I don't know how long I cried, but when I finally decided I was going outside, the sun was setting. I crept to the entrance and kicked the barrels out of my way, not really caring how much noise I was making. Mama was still tied to the tree, covered with cuts, bruises, blood. I walked over to her and saw a knife on the ground beside her. I picked it up and studied it. It was covered in blood, which slowly slid down the blade onto my hand. I ignored it, even though it was still warm. I used the knife to cut the ropes binding mama. She fell off the tree and I caught her, barely, before she hit the ground. I carefully placed her on the ground on her back._

_As I was bent over mama, I noticed some movement out of the corner of my eye. I spun, instinctively raising my knife against who ever was behind me. Behind me was a man I had never seen before. He wasn't very tall and he was wearing purple animal hides and his hair was a weird green color. I stared at him completely bewildered. Who was this man? I wondered. What did he want?_

_There was a noise behind me again that was so faint I wasn't really sure I had heard it at all. I turned and saw the man crouched next to mama. How had he gotten there so fast, without even making a sound? There were so many questions going through my head all at once but the one I couldn't figure out was, what was he doing? It was such a simple question but I had no answer. I saw that he was checking her for signs of life but even at that age I knew it was pointless, she was dead just like the others in the village. The thought was quickly pushed from my mind, the man had been muttering to himself almost like he was having a conversation with himself._

_I moved closer, determined to see what he was doing but still weary of him. I stopped a meter away from him but didn't get any closer. As I stopped I got the shock of my life, somehow even after everything she had been through, mama was still alive. Momentarily forgetting about the man, I moved closer to mama's side, completely aware of the tears that were filling my eyes. I fell to my knees beside her and grabbed her hand._

"_Mama," I whispered. Her hand tightened around mine._

"_I don't have much time left," she said._

"_Mama, you can't leave me," I said feeling the panic rising._

"_I don't have a choice baby," she said. "This man is Vancha. He'll take care of you until you're old enough to take care of yourself."_

_I looked up at Vancha but he was focused on mama. I looked back at her as she motioned to Vancha to lean closer. He did and she whispered to him._

_After about a minute he straitened back up and looked confused._

"_How is that even possible?" he asked._

"_This is all because of **HIM**," she said. _

_Vancha paled but said nothing, he was thinking about whatever she had just told him. I wanted to know what she told him but there was something about him that just wasn't right. I wasn't afraid, more like weary even though he seemed like a nice person._

_All this time I had been watching mama, watching as her eyes as the light in them were starting to dim. I held her hand and lightly rubbed it against my cheek, something I hadn't done since I was really little. I could feel her body heat start to leave her skin. I sat there trying not to panic, I had never felt so helpless in my life. Mama was dying and there was nothing I could do to stop it from happening._

"_Amber?" she whispered._

"_Yes mama?"_

"_Listen to Vancha," she said it so quietly I wasn't sure she had really said it. "Make me proud."_

_The light had completely faded and her hand slipped out of mine, hitting the ground with a soft thud. I don't know how long I cried and begged her not to leave me, knowing that it was completely useless. It could've been a half hour or a couple of hours, it was hard to tell. All I know was that I was in an endless pit of darkness and despair with no way out again. The sun was starting to rise but I was still by mama. Vancha tried to get me to move but every time he tried I either ignored him or glared at him, daring him to move me. After a while he gave up and I heard him walk away, but still I sat there._

_I must have fallen asleep because the next thing I knew I was being shaken wake. I opened my eyes and looked around. Mama's body was missing but I soon saw a mound of dirt. I instantly knew that was where she had been buried._

"_We need to get moving," Vancha said._

_I looked up at him. He still had dirt on his hands from when he dug the grave. I looked past him at the sky and saw that the sun was almost completely set. I got up and tried not to groan. Because I had been sleeping outside I was covered in dew, dirt, and I was sunburned in multiple places. I was so sore and it didn't help when I realized that my stomach felt like it was eating itself. I hadn't eaten anything for almost most two days._

_Vancha started walking to the front of the house and I was about to follow but I looked back at mama's grave. I walked over to it and kneeled beside it. I tried to think of something to say but nothing came to mind. I got up and ran around the house, trying to catch up with Vancha. I stopped, staring at the sight in front of me. There was almost nothing left of the village. There were piles of ashes everywhere along with fallen wood from the houses. Then there was all the bodies everywhere. There were some that had been eaten by wild animals already. Then there was the smell, I had to pull my shirt over my nose to keep from gagging. I had never in my life smelt something like that. It was a combination of decaying bodies and organs, old and new blood, and then there was the smell of urine and feces. It was bad enough that these people had been slaughtered, but then they were desecrated by the humans that killed them._

_I slowly made my way to the center of town, taking everything in. It was horrible and- it would haunt my dreams for years to come, everyone blaming me for what had happened - the more I saw the more my anger grew. These people didn't deserve this even the ones who did didn't deserve this. As I came to the center of the village I found my wolf and my anger turned into sorrow. I stood before him and glanced back at my house, the only thing that was still standing, and my sorrow deepened. I realized that my old carefree life was over, and my new life, with a man I didn't even know, was about to begin._


	12. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer: I do nbot own any of these characters excpet for the OC, the others belong to Darren Shan the true master of horror.**

* * *

**Chapter 12**

Vancha stared into the flames of the fire, trying to gather his thoughts. Larten had asked about his relationship with Amber, but even he didn't understand it all the way. Vancha had promised Amber's mother, Carolynn, that he would watch over Amber. But before she died Carolynn had reviled something that he didn't understand. Vancha and Carolynn had been close, lovers even, but that had been so long ago.

"Vancha?"

Vancha looked over at Larten, still trying to think of a way to explain something that even he didn't understand.

Vancha sighed. "I can't really answer that because I really don't understand it myself," he finally said.

Larten was confused. "How can you not understand it?" he asked.

Vancha thought that it was time for him to share his story with someone. "Along time ago, before I was a vampire, I was in love with a woman who meant everything to me," he said. What he didn't say was that he had also been a vampaneze before he had been a vampire, so this was a really long time ago, a time when even he was human.

"Her name was Carolynn and we had grown up together in the same village not to far form one another," he continued. They had been so happy together, they thought that they would marry and start a family together.

"The last time I saw her was the night before the wedding. I went to see her but she was nowhere to be found and no one knew where she had gone. She was never seen again." Vancha fell silent. This all happened along time ago but the pain was still as fresh as it was the day it happened.

"About 25 years ago, I got an unexpected and unpleasant visit from Desmond. He told me that if I wanted answers to what happened that day, I would have to go to a small isolated village. At first I was going to ignore him but I had to know what happened, so I went. But by the time I got there, everyone was dead and everything was burned down or in the process of burning. There was only one house left standing and it was the furthest from the rest of the village. I thought that this was strange so I went to check it out.

"I went behind the house and found Amber and her mother. Amber was just a child at the time but even then she was fierce and fearless," Vancha paused. "Did you know that even at that age she tried to stab me with a knife?"

"Did she really?" Larten asked the amusement evident in his voice.

"It's true," Vancha said. "And she was really going to do it too,"

Vancha and Larten sat in silence and after a while Vancha got up to check on Amber. She was moaning slightly, as if she was having a bad dream, but it was more likely from the fever and the pain she was in. Just because someone is unconscious didn't mean that they were immune to pain all the way. Vancha checked Amber's wounds and let out a small sigh of relief, they had stopped bleeding and they were healing.

Vancha returned to the fire and sat next to Larten. Larten gestured for Vancha to continue.

"Amber's mother was laying on the ground covered in blood, cuts, and burses. At first I didn't understand why Desmond had sent me there but then I got a good look at her mother. There was no mistaking it, her mother was Carolynn. Somehow she was still alive even after all those years," Vancha looked Larten in the eyes as he told him the point behind his confusion.

"You asked me what my relationship was with Amber. What I'm about to tell you must go no further then the two of us," he said in a serious tone. Larten nodded, silently giving his word that he would tell no one. Vancha took a deep breath. What he was about to say he had never told anyone, not even Amber.

"Amber is my daughter," he said slowly.


	13. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters except for the OC the others belong to Darren Shan, the true master of horror.**

* * *

**Chapter 13**

I slowly drifted back into consciousness. I was looking at where the sky should be but all I saw was a black nothingness. I moved my head to have a look around and noticed that I was in a way station and that Vancha and Larten were sitting by a fire not to far away. I slowly sat up but almost had to lie back down because of a wave of dizziness and I had to close my eyes to keep the room from spinning. When the dizziness subsided, I noticed that Vancha and Larten were talking, or rather Vancha was talking and Larten was listening. Parts of their conversation drifted towards me. Vancha was telling Larten about the day we met. My dream just forced me to relive that day, so everything was still fresh in my mind. Vancha was telling Larten what mama had told him.

"You asked me what my relationship was with Amber. What I'm about to tell you must go no further then the two of us," he said in a serious tone.

Between the two of them? What was so important that Vancha was trying to hind it from me? We never hid anything from each other.

"Amber is my daughter," Vancha said slowly

My heart, which had been pounding just moments before, seemed to stop. I didn't catch Larten's reaction but I knew that he must look as confused as I felt. Saying I was in complete shock was an understatement. As carefully as I could I lied back down and closed my eyes. My mind was working at a million miles per second, trying to think of how that was possible. Vancha had told me that he was over 200 years old. How in the hell was he my father?

Even with all the thoughts buzzing around in my head I somehow managed to fall asleep again and the next time I woke up it was because I was really cold. I looked around and saw that the fire had died down to practically nothing and the door was half covered by a snowdrift. The snowdrift didn't look that deep but it was hard to tell because the wind was still blowing. I reached down to remove the blanket that was covering me when I noticed that I was being covered by something else.

Vancha had covered me with not just a blanket, but his cape as well. His cape was made of the softest rabbit furs that I have ever felt in all my life, and they were nice and warm as well. When I was little I liked to run my hands over the soft hides and when ever Vancha took the cape off, which was rare, I would play with it and rub it on my face. The first couple of time Vancha caught me doing this he would yell at me but after a while he just let me because he knew that I would never let it out of my sight any more than he did and if anyone tried to take it from me they would regret it.

Perfect example: Once one of Vancha's friends had tried to take the cape away from me while I was sleeping, thinking he was being sneaky, but as soon as I felt him tug on it I jumped him, bit him hard enough to break the skin, then used my nails to claw up his face. (N/A: not bad for a little human.) By the end of it Vancha was rolling on the ground having trouble breathing because he was laughing so hard.

I looked around trying to find Vancha. I knew that Larten was likely to be in one of the coffins but it was unlikely that Vancha was in one too. Coffins were too comfortable for Vancha. I looked around again but instead of finding Vancha I found a piece of paper that hadn't been there earlier. Confused, I picked up the paper and saw that it was addressed to all three of us, but out of all of us I was the only one who knew how to read. That had been one of the good things about being in the mountain for so long. Arra had taught me how to read. She had been a strict teacher but we'd had fun together and she let me see a side of her that no one got to see, not even Larten. I read the letter once, twice, three times but I got more confused each time I read it.

"What are you looking at?" came a voice from right behind me. I jumped and turned around. Vancha and Larten were standing right behind me.

"Don't do that!" I yelled. "You startled me!"

"If you'd been paying attention, we wouldn't have snuck up on you," Vancha said. "Now would we?"

I glared at him but I didn't say anything. I wasn't really mad at him for keeping a big secret from me, what really made me mad was the fact that he didn't trust me enough to tell me. Vancha shifted uncomfortably and Larten did his best to ignore what just happened.

"What does it say?" Larten asked pointing to the paper.

"Apparently they're instructions about what we're supposed to do next," I said looking at the paper again.

"Instructions?"

"Supposedly their suggestions, but their written more like instructions,"

"What does it actually say?"

"Basically, go see Evanna, talk to her for a while, then go…"

"Go?" Vancha prompted.

I didn't look at either of them as I answered.

"Home,"

They both looked at me in confusion, but I didn't try to clarify. I moved away from the two of them before they could ask any questions and started gathering up the things that we would need to take with us. I picked up Vancha's cape and was stroking it absentmindedly, trying not to dwell on the past and almost failing.

I picked up the blanket and put it into the coffin it came out of. As I was doing that I thought again about where Vancha had been. Knowing him he had been standing in the sun again. It had been the latest thing he was trying to do to prove that he wasn't bound by his limitations but I've never understood why he did it. One of these days he was going to get wounded or fall asleep in the sun and he would roast to death. I shook my head trying to clear that mental picture from my mind and I walked over to Vancha and threw his cape on him and walked outside.

It was like I had thought, there was snow on the inside of the cave proving that someone had walked in or out or both, depending on how one wanted to look at it. Luckily enough the snow had stopped blowing and the sky had cleared and the sun was just setting. I love sunsets. Everything at this time was so peaceful. This was the time for the world to sleep and for the creatures of the night to come out and play. The sky was filled with many colors. There were reds, oranges, a little purple, and faint traces of yellow from the dying rays of the sun. I took a deep breath and stretched, being careful of my wounds. It was so peaceful, almost relaxing.

I was jarred from my thoughts as I heard footsteps approach. I didn't even bother turning to see who it was, I knew it was Larten. He stopped next to me and looked at the fading sun. We were both quiet for a while before he asked the question that I had been silently dreading.

"How much of our conversation did you overhear?" he asked.

"I heard enough," I said truthfully.

"But what did you hear specifically?"

For a while I didn't say anything but he kept looking at me waiting for an answer. I sighed.

"I heard Vancha tell you about my past," I said not wanting to say any more. Larten seemed to sense this because he didn't say anything for a while.

"You want to know something weird?" I asked, trying to destract myself.

"What?"

"Back when she was alive I used to tell my mother 'one day I'm gonna be a vampire, and not just any vampire, I gonna be the leader of the clan,'" I paused and frowned. "Now I know why she never told be that that was a silly idea. She actually encouraged me to do that. Weird huh?"

"Well not really if you think about," Larten said.

We stood there in silence again but soon I felt an urge that I had to follow.

"I'm going to walk around for a while," I said "I'm feeling restless."

Larten looked at me with an eyebrow raised.

"Don't worry," I said "I won't be attacked by another bear. What are the odds of that anyway?"

It was a rhetorical question and I didn't expect him to answer. I decided that I wanted my sword, just in case something did happen. I walked back into the cave but I didn't see my sword anywhere, or my sheath for that matter. It too must have fallen somewhere.

"Vancha, where's my sword?" I asked still looking around, hoping to find it.

Vancha looked at me. "Uhh…"

I rolled my eyes, "I'll go find it then,"

"No you're not," he said firmly.

"Fine," I muttered just loud enough for him to hear. "Sire,"

I knew that I wasn't going to stay put. I had to find that sword and nothing was going to stop me. I walked back to the mouth of the cave, keeping an eye on both Vancha and Larten, who had followed me in and was now standing by the coffins double checking everything. I took this as an opportunity to sneak out without either of them noticing.

**To be continued.**


	14. Chapter 14

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in this story except for the OC the others belong to Darren Shan the true master of horror.**

* * *

**Chapter 14**

_Half an hour later_

The next time Vancha looked up he noticed that Amber was gone. He looked around to see if she was in a corner sulking or something but she was no where to be seen. Larten was in the center of the cave near their things making sure that they had everything they needed.

"Larten?"

Larten looked up and raised an eyebrow.

"Where's Amber?" Vancha asked.

Larten looked around the cave. "I do not know," he said. "I have not seen her for a while now."

"You don't think that she went after her sword, do you?"

"It is possible," Larten said. "She made that sword herself and she takes great pride in it."

Vancha hadn't known that Amber had made that sword herself, but that would explain why she had been so intent on having it with her all the time.

Vancha sighed. "I'm going to go find her," he said. "I want you to stay here in case she decides to come back while I'm out."

"Aye Sire," Larten said.

Vancha hated it when ever someone called him "Sire." Larten said it as a form of respect, whereas Amber said it when ever she was mad or upset at him or something he had done. Had she called him Sire before she left? He couldn't remember. Even if she had, why would she? What could she be mad about?

He paled as realization hit him in the face. Had she overheard what he had told Larten? That would explain her irritation towards him. But she had been unconscious the whole time, hadn't she? Vancha now needed to find her more than ever. He had to somehow explain everything to her and make things right. This was now the second time he had seriously screwed up within the last week and he hoped that he wouldn't do it again.

As he was leaving he noticed the paper laying on the ground. He picked it up and scanned it. Even though he had never learned to read, Amber had been trying to teach him, which he thought was a waste of time, he had picked up on certain words like his name, Amber's name and a few other things.

"Is something wrong Vancha?" Larten asked.

"She lied to us," he answered quietly.

"What do you mean?"

"Amber taught me a few words," he explained. "But this doesn't mention Evanna at all. So Amber lied about what this says."

Vancha crumpled the paper and threw it against a wall angrier than he had ever been. What was Amber really hiding from them? And why lie about it when they would've found out anyway? Now, more than ever, Vancha had to find Amber, and when he did, they were going to have a vary, vary long talk about everything.

**To be continued.**

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**Sorry that this chapter was so short, but I wrote this one a while ago when I was bored in school, and I didn't know how to change it to make it longer. Sorry again. -Awsomeredvampire.**


	15. Chapter 15

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in this story except for the OC, the others belong to Darren Shan, the true master of horror.**

* * *

**Chapter 15**

The first thing I did after I left the cave was look for a tree so I could get a better view of the final rays of the setting sun. And it was still breathtaking. The branch I had been sitting on was only about 20 feet off the ground so I jumped off. If something happened and I didn't land on my feet, at least the snow was there to cushion the fall instead of just the ground, and more importantly, lots of rocks. I landed squarely on my feet in a slight crouch and started to find the scent of the bear or its blood. This proved to be harder than I had first thought because the scent was covered by not only the time that had pasted, but by the snow that covered the ground and hung in the air, covering the scent in its pure nothingness. It also didn't help that it was starting to snow again. I know that mountains get a lot of snow, but seriously? The fricking snow was already up to my knees. This is ridiculous!

After trudging through the snow for an hour, by this point it was almost up to my thighs, I finally came to the clearing where I had, poorly, fought the bear. It was covered in a thick layer of snow and ice, freeing it to the ground. I searched close to the bear but found nothing, so I widened my search area. I had to flatten down the snow to get a better look at everything. It took me about ten minutes to cover, or uncover however you want to look at it, an area of three feet by three. Working like this was going to take forever and I was known for being the least patient person on the face of the planet, as I was often told by everyone around me. About this time the wind started to pick up and blow the snow in every direction imaginable.

The snow, which was usually very soft and fluffy, felt like thousands of sharp needles hitting me everywhere and anywhere. I knew that I had to find shelter but I wanted my sword and nothing was going to stop me, not even the stupid messed up weather. As if it knew that I had insulted it, the wind picked up even more. It was getting to the point which made breathing difficult and seeing was getting to be out of the question. _Insult me will you, _it seamed to be saying. _Fine then. I'll make it so bad that you'll walk off a cliff and die. Let's see how you feel then._

I couldn't even open my eyes to try to see where I was going. The wind was roaring in my ears preventing me from hearing anything. I couldn't see, hear, and even my sense of smell was gone. I was completely blind and deaf to all my senses. I was trying not to panic, panic would make everything worse and it wasn't going to help any. I was at the point where I couldn't stop but I couldn't move for fear of walking off a cliff or into one of the many rivers and drowned. Another problem was that I was downwind so the wind was blowing directly into my face, so even if I could smell anything it would be useless. It also meant that if something was sneaking up from behind I would never know until it was too late.

For the first time ever, I started to with that I had listened to Vancha and stayed in the mountain where I was safe. He had been right, I wasn't ready to be out here on my own yet. As soon as that thought crossed my mind I was instantly mad at myself. I had been working for years to prove to others, to myself, that I could do this and where did I find myself now, trapped knee deep in self-pity. I forced myself to open my eyes and to take a step forward.

The wind had picked up and it now felt like my breath was being ripped away from me, even before it left my lungs. I tried to cup my hands over my mouth but it wasn't long before I was starting to lose feeling in them and I saw that my hands were quickly turning pale and they had a bluish tint to them. I was starting to get frostbite and my body was starting to shut down on me. Frostbite and hypothermia, what a great combination to have, I think NOT. I looked around and saw nothing but white. I had only been standing still for a few moments, but in that time the snow started blowing in every direction and all I could see was whiteness, a white out.

I fought my way through the snow, trying to reach the clearing again, when I tripped on something and fell face first into the snow. I quickly pushed myself up, but some of the snow already melted on my face and it was quickly freezing. I looked back to see what I had tripped on and saw something black in all the white. It was my sheath and some how the sword was already in it. Rather than being confused about how the sword had found the sheath, which was vary weird, I knew that I had to get back to the way station. But that was about an hour walk from here and I didn't have that much time.

My body was starting to refuse to listen to me and I was colder than I had ever been in my whole life, colder than the time I had decided to go swimming in glacier runoff in the middle of winter- not the smartest decision I ever made, I was sick for almost a month. I took a step forward but my legs wouldn't support me anymore and I fell into the snow once again. As I lay there, I started to cry. _I have got to be the most pathetic vampire ever, _I thought. _I haven't even been out here for 24 hours yet and this is the second time I've put myself in so much danger. I'm so pathetic!_

I felt a hand on my shoulder and I moved my head weakly to see who it was. I was having trouble seeing and could barely make out the person in front of me. The hand on my shoulder was warm and comforting. It was strange but also familiar.

"Amber," a soft voice called. "You need to stay strong and fight through this."

The voice was so familiar, but I couldn't place it anywhere. It was feminine and it sounded like a voice I'd once knew from the distant past. My eyes were starting to focus but I thought that they were still playing tricks on me. There was no way the person before me could be alive, I saw her die with my own eyes all those years ago.

"Mama, Is that really you?"

To be continued.


	16. Chapter 16

******Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters, except for the OC, the others belong to Darren Shan, the master of horrors.  
**

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**Chapter 16**

Vancha was struggling through the snow. He had been in some of the harshest weather in his day, but this freak blizzard, rare even on this mountain, was one of the worst he had ever experienced. This was worse than the time he was in Greenland looking for the legendary resting place of Petra Vin-Grahl. At least there he had walked away with minor frostbite, here it was hard to tell if he would walk away with everything in tacked. He had to get to Amber and if he lost anything to frostbite, than consequences be damned. The wind threatened to blow him over with every move he made and it chilled him to the bone, or maybe even deeper than that.

The thing about Vancha was that he barely noticed what the weather was doing and if was bothering him this much, then others wouldn't have a hope in hell. The more time passed the more he worried about Amber. She had been so sure that she could overcome anything, but this storm was on its own level. Storms like this could kill a human in about half an hour, if they were lucky to survive that long, whereas a vampire could survive for about two hours, again if they were lucky, and Amber had been out here for about an hour and a half, so she would be lucky to have about half an hour left.

That thought forced Vancha to try to move faster but the storm was preventing him from doing that, the wind just wouldn't let him. Vancha no longer felt anger at about her lying to him, he just wanted her safe and in one piece.

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Sorry this chapter isn't anywhere near long enough to make up for the time between posting this and the previous chapters but with school and life getting in the way it can be kind of difficult. Hopefully I can post more chapters sooner next time. Sorry again.

~Awsomeredvampire


	17. Chapter 17

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters, except for the OC, the others belong to Darren Shan, the true master of horror.**

* * *

**Chapter 17**

I lay in the snow, slowly being covered by it, looking at the women before me.

"Mama, is that really you?" I asked.

She smiled and brushed some of the snow from my bangs.

"Yes," she said still smiling. "It's really me."

I looked at her confused.

"But how?" I asked. "I saw you die."

She sadly shook her head.

"Why are vampires so blunt?" she asked.

"That's partly Vancha's fault," I said not really thinking how I was phrasing my words. "That was how he raised me and it's how all vampires think. We need to be blunt because that's how the world is."

She smiled again. "Vancha always was rash, but he could come up with a solution to any problem he could find."

I was quiet for a minute trying to get the courage to ask about the past, but part of me was afraid of finding out what had happened while the other part was desperate to know if what Vancha had said was true.

Mama must've sensed this.

"You want to know about what happened in the past, don't you?" she asked.

I nodded, unable to speak.

"If I tell you, you must promise on your vampire blood not to tell Vancha," she said seriously.

I couldn't figure out why she didn't want Vancha to know but I agreed. Her body heat that had been transferring to me had warmed me enough for me to be able to sit up and my mind had started to clear and function.

"A long time ago," she began. "Way before you were born, Vancha and I grew up in the same small quiet village. Vancha hadn't been born there like I was but we became close all the same."

She had a faraway look in her eyes, the look that I had seen in some of the older vampires where they were remembering a time long ago, and I had the sudden feeling that I was about to get a lot more information than I had bargained for.

"From a young age, Vancha and I did everything together, the two of us were inseparable, and even at that age Vancha had a strong love of nature. We spent many nights together in the forest on the outskirts of the village."

I had to surpass the urge to gag. Vampires were defiantly not romantic creatures by nature and I was no different.

"I can see that you don't care about the story that far back," she said laughing at my expression. "So I'll just skip ahead to the night everything changed. Vancha had asked me to marry him and I agreed. The night before the wedding I found out that I was pregnant and I got a visit from an unfortunate person. His name was Mitch and he was jealous that I was marring Vancha. Mitch had asked me to marry him multiple times over the years but I had agreed to marry Vancha, something he never forgot or forgave, and when I told him that I was already caring Vancha's child, he lost his mind.

"He came after me and tried to kill me and he would've succeeded if it hadn't been for Evanna. She said something in a strange language and he just disappeared. Evanna told me that it was too dangerous for me to be here and that she could take me somewhere safe. At first I didn't want to go, I knew that Vancha would do anything to protect me and I would do the same for him.

"At that time I didn't know how big of an impact this choice would have, but because I was scared I agreed. Vancha didn't even know about the choice I made, he didn't even know I was pregnant. Evanna looked sad but she said something else in that strange language and I was soon in a swamp, far from the place I grew up. I was with her for a few months before she told me why she had come. It had been Vancha's destiny to become a vampaneze and if we had gotten married it could've changed everything.

"At first I felt so mad at having been tricked. If I'd have stayed with him, everything bad that happened in his life never would've happened and he could've avoided so much pain."


	18. Chapter 18

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in this story except for the OC, the others belong To Darren Shan, the true master of horror.**

* * *

**Chapter 18**

Vancha was almost to the clearing but because of the snow and wind, he could barely see the bear corps in front of him. Vancha was concentrating so hard on everything around him he jumped when Larten's voice entered his head.

"_Have you discovered anything yet?"_ he asked.

"_No,"_ Vancha answered. _"Have you seen any sign of her?"_

"_No. I have not seen anything."_

Vancha didn't like that. He was worried he wouldn't be able to find Amber in time. It was getting late and he was starting to lose the feeling in his legs. Vancha had come to a standstill when he had been talking telepathically to Larten. Vancha glanced around, trying to find anything that could point him in the right direction, but he found nothing. He moved on determined to find her.

As he moved on he tried to shake the thoughts that something bad had happened to her and he hadn't been there to protect her. Vampires might be hardened creatures but that didn't mean they were completely emotionless and he had a reason to be more protective than the others. While others would never know what it was like to truly father anyone, though they claimed their assistants as their children, Amber really was his in more than the blood that bonded assistants to their masters; she was his from before he had become a vampire, before he had been a vampaneze, she was his from when he'd been human.

"Vancha," said a soft gentle voice that broke through his thoughts.

Vancha stopped and looked around but there was no one around. Vancha shook his head. He'd just been imaging things, he was sure of it. Vancha pressed onward. The wind was blowing harder and soon he would be forced to take cover.

"Vancha," said the same soft voice.

Vancha stopped and strained his ears to detect the voice over the howling wind but again he could hear nothing. There was something vaguely familiar about the voice but there was no way to place it without hearing it again. The voice called to Vancha again but this time he swore he could see the vague outline of a person walking in the opposite direction. Intrigued, Vancha walked towards the person but every time he thought he was getting close, he discovered that he was still a great distance behind and soon he realize that he was being led down the mountain.


	19. Chapter 19

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in this story except for the OC, the others belong to Darren Shan the true master of horror.  
**

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**Chapter 19**

"But mama," I said as I followed behind her. We were walking through a dense forest. The forest was so thick that when I looked up I couldn't see the stars through all the leaves and branches overhead. "I don't understand. What's happening?"

"It'll be explained soon," she said. "Don't worry."

That didn't put my mind at ease but I continued to follow nonetheless. We had been walking for some time, I'd tried to keep track but I'd lost track of it about three nights in. We traveled at night, covering a great distance before the sun rose. During that time, mama would disappear and would return with the setting of the sun telling me it was time to continue our journey.

"Where are we going?" I asked for the fifth time that night.

"Don't worry," she answered. "We'll be there soon."

"That's what you said three nights ago," I muttered.

"Well, this time I mean it."

Her comment made me stop in my tracks.

"Who are you really?" I asked.

'Mama' Stopped and turned towards me.

"I'm your mother," she said calmly.

"No, you're not."

"How do you want me to prove myself?"

"By answering this question: where did you hide me when the bandits attacked?"

I could see the confusion in her eyes and my body tensed, ready to get away.

"What are you talking about?" she asked. "There never was an attack. You were stolen from me."

That was all the proof I needed. This women wasn't my mother, she was a fraud that I had to get away from. I turned and ran as fast as I could to get away from her and because she was just a human, when I used all my speed it looked like I just vanished. The woman gasped and looked around for me, calling my name, begging me to come back but I ignored her.

I ran through the forest, trying to get away, when I realized that I was crying. I wiped the tears away and silently berated myself for believing that this woman had been my mother. My mother was dead and nothing was going to change that fact. I had been so busy trying to pull myself back together that when I burst through the forest into a clearing I didn't see the trap until it was too late.

The trap was laid out in the open and it was very easy to spot, but because I hadn't been paying attention I was going to fall right into it. It was a pit trap and because the ground was wet from resent rain, the ground was still covered in various puddles and the ground was slippery, when I tried to stop I slipped and slid right into the trap. Thankfully there were no stakes lining the bottom like I feared, but instead there was a rope net and as soon as I landed in it the force knocked it lose and, because I twisted when I fell, I got tangled in it.

The hole was a lot deeper than it had looked. I landed hard on my back and the wind was knocked from my body. When I got my breath back I groaned and tried to break free, but I discovered that it was too strong for me. I groaned out of frustration and after a few seconds I heard the sound of approaching footsteps. I looked up and saw that I was completely surrounded. The men picked me out of the hole and threw me onto the ground. I landed on my stomach and had a hard time trying to keep the contents of my stomach from coming back up.

"Well, well, well. Look what have here," a voice said. There was a little more movement and the bandit from the village, Mitch, came into my sights. He grabbed me by my face and forced my too look him in the eye.

"We just caught ourselves some nice bait."


	20. Chapter 20

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in this story except for the OC, the others belong to Darren Shan, the true master of horror.**

* * *

**Chapter 20**

"Slow down Vancha!" Larten shouted at him. Vancha had been following the figure that only he seemed to be able to see for some time now and he showed no sign of slowing down. In his pursuit, Vancha had stopped at the way station long enough to grab Larten and a few supplies before racing after the figure again. Vancha had told Larten that he was sure that if he followed the figure it would led them to Amber.

"And then I'm going to kill her," Vancha had muttered.

After a while Vancha came to a stop and Larten finally had a chance to catch up. When Larten stopped next to Vancha, he was breathing a little hard. Larten had rediscovered the hard way that Vancha could really move when he wanted to. When Larten caught his breath he looked around and saw that they were at the edge of a clearing and there was a pit trap in the center of it. Vancha had been looking around and Larten drew his attention to the pit. Together they walked out to investigate it.

"This thing is deep enough to trap a human with ease," Vancha said looking into the pit.

"Or a vampire," Larten remarked. He received a dirty look from Vancha for the remark but Larten just shrugged. It wasn't his fault he was the only one that was thinking clearly.

"Where did your little guide go?" Larten asked.

"I don't know," Vancha said looking around again. "It just disa…" he trailed off as he looked that the ground and saw the prints that were there. He could also smell something faintly but he didn't want it to be true.

Vancha and Larten shared a look before following the tracks with their eyes only to discover that the tracks led back into the forest.

"What do you think?" Vancha asked.

"From the way the tracks are deep and are on top of each other, I would say that someone was chased through here and was driven into the pit."

Vancha nodded in agreement.

"The question is who was chased and why were they?"

"I already know who was chased," Vancha said.

"How do you know that?" Larten asked raising an eyebrow.

"There's blood mixed into the mud over there," he said indicating the ground about five yards away.

When Larten sniffed the air he could detect the faint smell of blood in with the heavy scent of the earth.

"It is Amber's," Larten said. It was a statement, not a question but Vancha still nodded.

"At least she left us a trail to follow," Larten said.

Vancha gave Larten a look that clearly said 'Did you really just phrase that like that?' and Larten shrugged again.

The two of them followed the trail for about an hour before they were forced to stop because of the rising sun. Larten wanted nothing more than to fall down and sleep but he could see that Vancha was fidgety and wanted to move on.

"Why not go ahead of me?" Larten asked, startling Vancha slightly. Vancha looked at him.

"It is clear that you want to continue, so why not go ahead and we can meet somewhere later."

Vancha nodded solemnly but Larten could see the gratitude in the Prince's eyes and body. Vancha turned and started to walk off. After a few steps Vancha paused and turned back to thank Larten when a blood curtailing, pain filled scream tore through the morning stillness. The scream made both men jump and they instantly knew who it belonged to. A second scream followed and this one lasted longer and was filled with more pain and suffering. The blood completely drained from Vancha's face and he ran as fast as he could towards the sounds of the screams with Larten right on his heels.

After about five minutes they came to the outskirts of what was once a small village. It was clear that the village had been abandoned for some time for reasons that were obvious just by looking around.

"I've been here before," Vancha said looking around.

The buildings, what was left of them anyway, had been reduced to ash and burnt timbers from a long ago fire that had swept through the village.

"Is this the village where Amber grew up?" Larten asked looking at the skeletons that littered the ground.

Vancha nodded and also looked at the skeletons. Because Vancha had been here not to long after these people died, he could still remember what they had looked like. There were skeletons of all sizes ranging from very small children to adults. Some of the skeletons were in each other's arms. There were adults with their arms wrapped around children, there were children holding each other in death, and there was a few where a skeleton had a smaller skeleton inside of it. Vancha shook his head to get rid of the memories of the past and started walking towards the one building that was still standing, sort of.

Vancha knew that this was where he would find Amber because this sole surviving building was the house she had grown up in. Before Vancha was able to get too far, Larten reached out and placed his hand on the Princes shoulder.

"I know you want to find her," Larten said. "But we need to wait until the sun has set. You will be no good to her if you are weakened because of sunburn. That house is too exposed."

Vancha knew that what Larten said was true. The house was set further back from the others, that was the only reason it was still in tacked, and it was directly in the suns path. Larten led Vancha to find a place where they could rest and wait for night fall, but both of them knew that because of the screams that still echoed through their heads neither one was going to get much sleep that day.


	21. Chapter 21

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in this story, except for the OC. The others belong to Darren Shan, the true master of horror.**

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**Chapter 21**

After Mitch called me "bait", I bit his hand as hard as I could. He howled and punched me in the face with his free hand. I had to let go because he broke my nose, the pain was unbearable and it was impossible for me to keep my grip on him. I quickly spat out the taste of his weird tasting blood and Mitch quickly kicked me in the stomach, the impact forcing me to double over. His kick had a lot of power behind it and I was surprised by that.

The kick made me lose my breath and by the time I got it back I had already been thrown over someone's shoulder. I struggled for a little bit but my captor was stronger than I thought and he was easily able to keep his balance and handle anything I did. When that failed, and without anyone noticing, I quickly cut my wrist with my nails and I let the blood fall to the ground. I reasoned that if enough blood accumulated I could leave a trail for Vancha and Larten to follow, assuming they were even anywhere close to me, but as soon as we began to move people were stepping in the blood and grinding it further and further into the ground and I could feel my hope fading as each person walked over the blood. I prayed that there was still enough blood on the surface for Vancha to pick up on, otherwise I was in major trouble.

After an hour we came to the remains of a small village and I looked around, wondering why everything looked vaguely familiar. The one thing that stood out was a sad looking little house that looked like it could fall over at any second. I was dumped onto the ground and I managed to somehow get back on my feet before being lead into the house. The inside of the house was nowhere near as bad as the outside made it look. It was actually still very sturdy and there was a fire blazing in the fireplace and because of it, the room was nice and warm.

I continued to look around and, though I couldn't believe that I hadn't realized it until now, I was shocked when I remembered that this was my home, my village. I was so focused on my shock and disbelief that I didn't notice someone walked up behind me until it was too late. The floor behind me creaked and I turned just as someone swung something big and heavy at the side of my head.

The object connected and my head felt like it was going to explode. My vision darkened and I fell to the floor, unconscious before I even made it halfway through my fall and completely register my surprise.

The next time I opened my eyes the sun was rising and it was shining in my eyes. I tried to raise my hand to shield them but I couldn't move, except for my head, and I looked to see that my arms and legs were tied to what I was laying on and I discovered that I was in the shape of a cross. I also discovered that I was in nothing more than my bra and underwear.

_I'm a vampire on a crucifix_, I thought. _How ironic._

I tried to snap the rope that was holding me down, while I could move it a little, I was unable to get free.I couldn't believe how pathetic I was, it was bad enough to be captured by humans but being unable to escape was worse. Everything that I had worked for, to prove I could handle anything the world threw at me was just a sick joke now.

I hated how weak I was, how pathetic I was, and I knew that if I stopped fighting I would not only be letting myself down, but I'd also let Vancha down. I wanted him to see what I was capable of, that was why I had left the mountain in the first place, and I wanted Vancha to be proud of me for once. No matter what happened, I had to keep trying. I spent the next few minutes trying to get free but no matter what I tried I couldn't get lose.

"Look who's finally awake," Mitch said as he entered the room. As soon as I saw him I stopped and glared at him.

"With you being a vampire, I'd have thought being in the sun would've killed you by now."

"Sorry," I said sarcastically. "I can't be killed that easily."

"No matter," he said. "I'll just find some other way to kill you."

Mitch walked towards me and reached out to touch my face and I turned my head away from him as much as I could.

"Would you like some blood?" he asked.

"Sorry but your blood would probably make me sick."

"And why is that?" he asked somewhat curious.

I broke out into a sadistic grin. "Because I can't drink snakes blood," I said.

Mitch's features twisted with hatred.

"You'll regret that," he said.

"Oooh I'm so scared."

"You should be," he said was he walked over to the fireplace.

He beckoned for someone to enter before he disappeared for a second as he bent over to take something out of the fire. When Mitch stood up two people entered the room. One of them crossed the room and stood by Mitch while the other stood by my left hand. I saw that he had a mallet and I wondered what he was doing with it. I looked back at Mitch and saw that he had a pair of tongs in his hands and he was fishing something out of the fire.

When he had grabbed what he was looking for he turned towards me and I saw that at the end of the tongs was a red hot nail. At first I was confused as to why he had that but then it hit me. My heart stopped and I broke out in a sweat as Mitch walked back towards me and I prayed that what I thought was about to happen was wrong. But as usual my prayers went unanswered. Mitch positioned the nail about a centimeter above me left hand, I could feel the heat against my skin, and he nodded at the guy with the mallet. The man raised the mallet and he brought the mallet down as hard and as fast as he could.

Now I've been in some extremely painful situations before but this was the worst. Think of how painful it would be to stick your hand in boiling oil and tar then set the whole thing on fire. Now multiply that pain by twenty, and that still doesn't cover the level of pain I experienced. And because I received the same training as some of the Generals at the mountain I was able to ignore the pain for a brief time, until the nail got hammered again.

I could hear and smell the bubbling flesh of my hand and that was it. I screamed. While I was screaming the second man came over with another nail and proceeded to do the same thing to my right hand. The second nail was even hotter than the first, the nail was almost white, so the pain was more extreme. It was amazing that I was able to stay conscious the whole time. When they were done Mitch leaned over me.

"I told you, you would regret what you said," he whispered.

"And you're going to regret doing this to me," I said softly through my tears. "Vancha's going to kill you for this and so am I."

Mitch's face twisted when I mentioned Vancha.

"Vancha's the whole reason I'm doing this, in case you couldn't tell," he sneered. "He ruined my life and now I'm going to ruin his."

"You're going to have to wait in line," I said. "Someone's already beating you to it."

I never saw Mitch's fist until it connected with the side of my head. I saw stars and I heard one last thing before I plunged into darkness.

"Put her outside in the village center," Mitch said to his two lackeys. "She's going to be the center piece for when Vancha arrives."

The lackeys grinned at each other and grabbed the cross lifting it off the ground before carrying it outside to put it in the center of the village for everyone, both the living and the dead, to see.


	22. Chapter 22

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in this story, except for the OC. The others belong to Darren Shan, the true master of horror.**

**Italics in this story show memories or thoughts from the characters. Please R&R.**

* * *

**Chapter 22**

Vancha lay awake under the shade of the tree he and Larten were camped under for the day. Amber's tortured screams still echoed through his head, even though they had subsided some time ago. As he stared at the leaves above his head, Vancha let his mind wander back to the past, wishing he could go back to the simpler time that they had shared. A time when it was just the two of them against whatever the world threw at them. He wanted his headstrong, self-confident assistant back, he wanted his daughter back.

He wanted to go back to the time when he was training her himself like he used to, before they ever went to the Mountain, when they had fought hand-to-hand until they were both lying on the ground having just pushed each other to their limit, more hers then his, though he had silently admitted to himself she was making great progress.

Vancha rolled over onto his side and continued to think of how things had changed between them. His next memory was when he'd told her that they were going to the Mountain.

"_Why are we going to the Mountain?" Amber asked as she followed behind Vancha._

"_Because you can learn a lot from the different masters and trainers there," he said. "They can teach you how to use different weapons, more about the history of the clan, which goes back a long way and I probably forgot some of the less popular stories." That had been more to himself than to her. "And most importantly they can help you become a vampire of great standing."_

_Amber was quiet for a while and Vancha could tell that she wasn't happy with the answer she had just been given. She quickened her pace and walked around Vancha so that she was right in front of him before stopping in his way and forcing him to stop as well._

"_Why are we really going?" she demanded looking him in the eyes._

_Vancha sighed. Amber had always been able to tell when he was hiding something from her, though she hadn't figured out the biggest thing he was keeping to himself (thankfully), thought he really hated it when she did this, but now that she knew something else was really going on it was pointless to try to continue to hide it. She would just bug him until he told her anyway._

"_I've been called to the Mountain to take care of something," he said semi vaguely. "And I have to present you to the other Princes and tell them how I came about you for an assistant."_

_Amber's eyes flashed with anger and Vancha realized he'd said the wrong thing._

"'_How you came about me?'" Amber repeated angrily as Vancha flinched. "You just happened to be coming to my village at the time because you and my mother were old friends." If only she knew the truth. "You make it sound like I was some unwanted thing you found and rescued off the side of the road because you took pity on it!"_

_Amber turned and ran off into the large empty meadow they had been walking through and after standing in shock for a few minutes Vancha hurried off to find her. It took him a while but he finally found her next to a small brook that was lazily making its way across the wide open area. Amber was sitting on the ground beside the brook with her knees drawn up against her chest and it looked like she was staring out into the space beyond the brook. Vancha's first impulse was to yell at her for running off like that but a soft sniffling reached his ears as he opened his mouth._

_Amber was not someone to let others see her when she cried. She felt that tears showed a weakness within a person and she didn't want anyone to think she was weak. Because of this fact, Vancha often forgot that she was still a child. They had only been together for four years and, though she tried to hide it, she was still haunted by the murder of her mother and the execution of her village._

_Vancha watched Amber as her gaze shifted from the meadow to the stars above her, not knowing what to say anymore but not wanting to interrupt her. She had a tendency to bottle up her feelings until they became too much for her, the same way her mother had whenever something was bothering her._

_Vancha opened his mouth to say something to let her know that he was here but before he got anything out he heard he start talking to herself._

"_I miss you so much mama," she said softly. "I wish you were here with me. I don't know what to do anymore."_

_Vancha saw more tears fall down Amber's cheeks and, before he could stop himself, he walked up and sat down beside her._

"_What do you want?" she asked brushing the tears away and turning away, refusing to look at him._

"_I didn't mean what I said," he said. "What I meant was I have to tell the Princes how we met and how you became my assistant. I didn't mean to say that you were something I picked up just because I felt sorry for you. I promised your mother that I would watch over you and protect you."_

"_Is that the only reason I'm still with you?" she asked quietly._

"_It was at first," he said honestly. "But as time passed, I realized I…"_

"_You realized you what?" she asked turning back and looking at him._

_Vancha blushed slightly, hoping it wasn't that noticeable. He wasn't very good at things like this and he was a little afraid he was going to say something stupid again._

"_I realized I need you as much as you need me. Maybe even more than you need me."_

_Amber didn't know how to respond to that so she just stared at him slightly confused._

"_I really don't know how to describe it," Vancha continued. "But I've been alone for a long time and there's just something about you that seems to fill the void."_

_It wasn't exactly a lie, but there was no way he could tell her why she was really with him when he didn't even know if what Carolynn had said was true or not. There was no point in telling her something he wasn't certain about only to have that ripped away from her too. She had been through a lot in her young life. She had only been his blooded assistant for about six months and she was still adjusting to her new life._

"_Really?" Amber asked as her eyes filled with tears again. "Do you really mean that?"_

_He nodded and gave her a small smile before he leaned over and tasseled her hair. Amber smiled at him as more tears fell but this time she didn't care if he saw them. For the first time in a long time she was happy and she felt that nothing could ruin this feeling._

"_Let's get moving," Vancha said as he stood up and offered her his hand. "It's a long way to the Mountain and we have to get started. We don't want to be the last to arrive."_

"_Right," Amber said excepting the hand and allowing herself to be pulled to her feet._

Vancha rolled over again, trying to get comfortable enough to get some sleep. He knew that if he didn't, he was no use to Amber. As he did, he reflected over the memory that had just played itself in his head. That had been an incredible bonding moment for the two of them and Amber started allowing Vancha to do different things for her. She had been so independent when they first met so it took her some time to get used to having someone help her all the time. But that only lasted for a brief period of time that changed not too long after they made it to the Mountain, and her troubles started all over again.


	23. Chapter 23

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in this story, except for the OC, the others belong to Darren Shan, the true master of horror. Italics are memories or thoughts and non-italics are normal unless it's in a memory then it's thoughts. **

**Please R&R and tell me what you like, don't like, or things that you want changed and I'll do my best to make the story better. Thank you.**

**-Awsomeredvampire**

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**Chapter 23**

When I was finally able to open my eyes I had to shut them quickly. The sun was right in my face and the light was almost unbearable. I carefully cracked an eye open and looked down at my body. My skin was a deep red color and I was grateful to be a half-vampire otherwise I'd probably be in Paradise right now. I could see some blisters were starting to form and I knew that if I got out of this alive I was going to be as sore as hell.

The one bad this about the cross, beside the fact that I was pinned to it, was that it was the same width as my body so only my front would be sunburned.

"Great," I muttered to myself. "I'm going to be half well done."

_It could always be worse,_ I thought. _I could be pinned to the roof and left for whatever bird to eat._

The thought made me pause. If I'd have been able to I probably would've slapped myself for such a stupid thought but the thought also made me smile. Vancha always used to yell at me for voicing thoughts like that. Not that I could really help it. Whenever I had a thought like that, it would simply come out of my mouth before I would stop it. I knew that if we had been in a different situation when that happened he'd probably find it funny because he had a twisted sense of humor or he'd just agree with me depending on what I said.

The smile slipped from me. I missed Vancha and if I got out of this, with or without his help, I vowed on my vampiric blood that I would do anything he told me to and I wouldn't complain no matter what it might be or how stupid it was. And I would also do whatever Larten said because I knew that he was likely the only thing that was keeping Vancha in check right now.

A shadow crossed the ground but I acted like I hadn't seen it and I kept my head down.

"You might as well quit with the act," Mitch said. "I know you're awake."

I looked up at him making sure to keep my face unreadable, but I was unable to hide the rage in my eyes. Mitch seemed to be amused by this and he moved closer to me.

"You're not really mad at me," he said. "The one you should be mad at is the one that's pushed you away before."

I glared at him.

"You know deep down that he's not coming for you. He pushed you away before, who's to say he won't do it again? I mean why wouldn't he? He is a very busy man and his top priority is to the clan not to any individual, regardless of how special you think you are. Why would he save a pathetic thing like you who can't even do anything right without getting herself in a world of trouble?"

I tried to ignore him and tell myself that he was wrong but something in me said that he was right. I did think that Vancha wouldn't come for me and that he was better off without me.

_No! _I shouted at myself. _There's no way Vancha would abandon me like that._

But who was I kidding? Mitch was right. Vancha had pushed me away before and he could easily do it again couldn't he?

"I'll let you think about that for a while," Mitch said as he started to walk away.

A few hours later the sun was really getting to me and I passed out. Because of everything that Mitch had said, I was forced to relive one of the parts I hated the most: the day we arrived at the Mountain and the events that happened not long after that.

* * *

_Vancha lead me through the twist and turns of the Mountain until we came to the Hall of welcome, the Hall of Osca Velm. The hall was packed with vampires and the noise was unbelievable. I was used to the quiet when it was just Vancha and I, so this change was almost overbearing. I caught Vancha glancing me and I acted like the noise wasn't bothering me, but he must've seen it anyway._

"_I know this is probably a little much for you," he said. "But I figured we could eat something and get some blood while we were nearby."_

_I nodded and followed him to a nearby table that was completely deserted, which was amazing given the number of people currently in the room. I was busy looking around the hall and I didn't notice there was food in front of me until Vancha nudged me. Because of my nerves I really wasn't that hungry but I knew that I had to eat something so I took a piece of bread and dipped it in the broth to soften it._

_After a few bites I stopped eating and looked around again. Some of the vampires had left but there was still a great deal of them. As I looked around a vampire on a ladder caught my attention._

"_What's he doing?" I asked._

"_He's writing the names of all the vampires here at Council," Vancha said as he bit into a large chunk of raw meat._

_I wanted to know more but before Vancha could explain further an old vampire walked up._

"_Greetings Sire," he said. "Welcome back to the Mountain."_

"_Hello Seba," Vancha said rising and shaking the vampire's hand before turning to me. "Amber, this is Seba Nile. He more or less takes care of the Mountain. Seba this is my assistant Amber."_

_I nodded a hello but I was suddenly too shy to shy to say anything._

"_Welcome to the Mountain," Seba said warmly. "You too must be tired after your journey. I'll show you to your rooms when you're ready."_

_Vancha glanced at me and I just shrugged. It was his call to make. Vancha nodded to Seba and we followed him out into the tunnels_

"_Would you like separate rooms or would you like to share one?" Seba asked._

_I glanced at Vancha, who was walking beside me and my expression clearly showed what I wanted._

"_We'll share one room." Vancha said. "At least until Amber becomes more familiar with the Mountain."_

_Seba nodded and lead us through the mountain while Vancha pointed out different things to me. I wasn't really paying attention. Seba stopped in front of a curtained off room and said that we could use this one. He pulled the curtain back and I entered. All things considered it was a large room for just the two of us, but it was clean, warm, but most importantly it was quite and I liked it. I looked back to see Vancha standing in the door talking to Seba but I couldn't hear what they were talking about but I wasn't really bothered by that._

_Seba saw me staring at them and he smiled at me._

"_I hope you enjoy your stay," he said._

_I smiled softly in return and had to ignore Vancha's look and as soon as Seba left Vancha asked:_

"_What was that about?"_

"_Nothing," I said. "Why?"_

"_You didn't say anything the entire time Seba was here."_

"_So?"_

"_It's nothing," Vancha said laughing softly. "I just didn't think you were the shy type."_

_I glared at him but I didn't say anything._

"_Come on," he said. "I'll show you some simple landmarks just in case you decide to wander off."_

_I glared at his retreating back but since I didn't want to stand here all night, and because I was curious as to what was here in the mountain, I fell in behind Vancha. The first place he brought me to was the Hall of sports. The three halls each had their own names but I wasn't paying attention to what they were called and I didn't really care because a fight in the center of the room had gotten my attention._

_There was an orange haired vampire fighting hand to hand with a brown haired vampire. I got closer to the fight to get a better view but still stayed far enough away from the other spectators. The fight was an amazing thing to see. The orange haired vampire was moving so fast, he was almost hard to see and even though I had only been there for a short time I could already see that he was going to be the victorious one._

"_He's incredible," I said._

"_That," Vancha said. "Is Larten Crepsley, one of the greatest Generals I know."_

_Hearing Vancha talk about someone with that much respect almost made me envy Larten and I silently hoped that one day Vancha would tell others about me like that. But before I could ask more about Larten a Guard walked up and told Vancha that the other Princes were expecting him. He was asked to report to the Hall of Princes and he was told that he was to bring me as well. Vancha nodded and the Guard bowed before leading us out into the hall. I stopped as I was in the Hall entrance and looked back at the fight just in time to see Larten make the finishing move on his opponent._

_The Hall of Princes sounded like an incredible thing to see as Vancha described it to me, but there was one thing I didn't understand._

"_If the Princes are the most respected in the clan, why are they in an impenetrable Hall?" I asked quietly so the Guard wouldn't hear. "Are they afraid of being attacked by something?"_

"_This Hall was a gift from Desmond Tiny," Vancha explained. "In the Hall is the Stone of Blood, an artifact that we consider a sacred item. Each vampire that becomes part of the clan touches the Stone and it absorbs their blood."_

"_How does a rock absorb blood?"_

"_We really don't know how it does it, but there's a belief that if the clan was ever to be whipped from existence, all the collected blood in the Stone would give rise to the clan once again."_

"_That makes absolutely no sense," I said. "How would a rock give rise to the clan?"_

"_It's a magic rock," Vancha said like that explained everything, which it didn't._

_I was stopped from asking any more questions by the Guard turning around and telling us to proceed further up the tunnel. We were stopped at various check points along the way to ensure that we weren't carrying anything we weren't supposed to, or rather I was checked because Vancha was a Prince and they knew he didn't have anything, he'd even left his shurikans in the room we were staying in. By the time we got to the top I was irritated to the point where if anyone touched me again I was going to hit them as hard as I could, regardless of who they were._

_We finally met with the Princes and everything was going ok until Paris started calling me child and it took everything in me not to glare at him. Luckily enough he could see that it bothered me but that didn't stop Mika from doing it to me. We finally left after an hour and a half and by that point I just wanted to flat out kill something. Vancha had to stay in the hall but luckily I had memorized the way to get back to the Hall of Sports and from there I could get to my room._

* * *

_From that time on, I saw less and less of Vancha. Sometimes I only saw him when he came back to sleep, but even now that was becoming less frequent. I had started training under Vanez Blain, the Games Master who was famous for teaching many in the clan, even some of the more famous Generals. There was a total of fifty others in the group with me and I was quickly making my way to first among them. Many of them knew that I was Vancha's assistant and that made them jealous. They thought that I had an advantage over them because of the prince blood that I'd gotten from him._

_We trained for months before we were given our first test, and that was to fight a less experienced General. I was the last to go so I divided my time by watching a few of the matches and talking to Larten and Arra. Over the last few months I had been talking to Larten more and more often and after a while he had introduced me to Arra. It was nice to know another girl and I started to spend time with her. Arra taught me many things. She taught me different methods of fighting, how to use my strength and stamina the proper way, how to use different weapons, and she taught me how to read. At first I didn't want to know how, it seemed like a pointless skill at the time but she said that it would give me an advantage over Vancha and many of the others and I had thought that it would be fun to be good at something Vancha had no idea about._

_It was going to be my turn soon and I started looking around the room. After a while Larten noticed what I was doing._

"_What are you looking for?" he asked._

"_I'm trying to find Vancha," I answered. "He promised that he'd be here for this."_

"_I heard him say something about having to look at a collapsed tunnel before we came here," Arra said. "I'm sure he'll show up before too long."_

"_I hope your right," I said. "I want him to see how much I've learned already."_

_Before I knew it, it was my turn and I quickly looked for Vancha one last time, but I never saw him. Larten and Arra both wished me luck and I nodded, wishing Vancha would show up already. For most of the fights I'd seen, many of my fellow trainees had pretty much failed miserably but I was determined to do my best to make Vancha proud. The General I was fighting had about three years' experience and it took me a second to realize that the other Generals had only one to two years' experience._

Of course I get the experienced one,_ I thought. _Either they really expect something out of me or they want to see me fail the hardest.

_I shook my head to clear my thoughts and I took my place on the training mat. The point of this test was to see how I would fair against a more experienced opponent but the problem with that was that I'd been doing that for years when it had just been Vancha and I, so my test had been changed to where I had to not only disarm and defeat my opponent the match would only be over when one of us was unconscious, making this test harder than it really should've been._

_I had decided earlier on that I wanted my fight to involve swords, I had made my own earlier in the month in anticipation to this fight, and I wanted to see how much I'd improved with it. At the starting signal the General, Keagan, and I circled around each other and waited for the one of us to make the first move. We continued doing that for a few minutes before my hand twitched and he came flying at me. I parried his first and second strike before trying to throw my own attack which he blocked with ease. I tried again and got half way through the strike before I realized that my arch was too wide and I had thrown my balance off too much._

_Before I could correct myself Keagan brought his sword across my arm and while I was able to move some he still gave me a good sized cut. The cut wasn't deep but it was long and it had just missed my vain, that had been way too close. I backed up a couple of steps and waited for his next move. I had to be careful from this point on or this fight would be over quickly and I'd be the one laying on the ground. Keagan wasted no time before attacking me again and while I was able to block some more of his attacks, he was somehow able to get under my sword and take it out of my hands. I was now weaponless and if I didn't do something soon I was really going to lose. If I could figure out a way to disarm him I could turn this into hand-to-hand fight, which was something I excelled at._

_I backed up some more and tried to ignore the sounds of cheering that was going on around me, encouraging Keagan to finish me already. I wanted to see where my sword had landed but I couldn't take my eyes off my opponent, if I did the battle was defiantly lost. In a sudden flash of madness I knew what I was going to do. Chances were that this wouldn't work, there was a possibility that this would even kill me, but I had to do it. I waited until Keagan charged me again and when he did I ran at him at the same time. I heard everyone gasp but I stayed focused on what I had to do. He brought his sword across like he was going to slice my stomach but I kept running. I was an inch from the blade before I jumped over his head and on my way down I was able to twist myself and kick him in the back of the head._

_I had landed a powerful blow, more powerful then I had intended, and he stumbled. I landed in a roll and came up on my knees. He was dazed and I took that opportunity to attack again. Before he even realized what I was going, I was able to kick the back of his knees out from under him and I was able to get is sword at the same time. He hit the ground hard and before he could get up I held the blade to his throat. The fight was over and I had won. I might not have knocked him out outright but with how unfocused his eyes were, there was no way he would've won. I took the sword away from his throat and offered him my hand after I had been declared the victor._

"_That was a good fight," I said._

_He slapped my hand away, got to his feet, and grabbed his sword from me before leaving the hall._

"_What was that about?" I asked no one particular._

"_He's probably just upset that not only a new blood, but a girl, beat him," Arra said as she and Larten walked up to me._

"_What a sore loser," I said._

"_He could have taken the loss with more dignity," Larten agreed. "But he was the one that wanted to do this so he should have expected that there might have been a chance that someone would defeat him."_

_All the Generals that had fought today were ones that had volunteered for it. Many of them only did it because they didn't expect much out of us._

"_I'll say it again," I said as I started looking around. "What a sore loser."_

"_Well sore loser aside," Arra said. "You put up a good fight and anyone should be proud of that."_

"_I am proud," I said failing to see what I wanted to and I tried to hide my disappointment. "But Vancha wasn't here to see it."_

_Even though everyone I met that night told me that I had done an amazing job for a new blood, especially one that had limited training with weapons like I did, their words meant nothing to me. Arra, and a few others that she had conned into going, wanted to celebrate my passing but I made some pathetic excuse not to go, I really wasn't in a celebratory mood. Instead I went for a walk down some of the tunnels to be by myself. I really hadn't been paying attention to where I was going so I was surprised to see that I had ended up in one of the many secluded places in the Mountain, the Hall of Final Voyage._

_This hall hadn't been used in some time because the bodies that had been placed in this fast flowing stream had plugged its self up decades ago and since that time many vampires preferred to be cremated. The hall was quite if you could ignore the sound of the swiftly flowing river and it was the perfect place for me to be right now. It meant that no one would be able to hear me cry. After a while though the tears turned into hate as I screamed and punched some of the nearby stalagmites, which I would not recommend doing._

"_Vancha, you asshole!"__ I shouted as I hit the stalagmite repeatedly._" You promised you'd be there for me!"

_I kept my fast pace for about a minute before I started to get tired and stop altogether._

"_You promised," I repeated softly as I slid to the floor and started crying again._

He doesn't care, _I thought. _I've always been in his way. I'm a burden to him and I always have been. The only reason he's kept me with him this long was because of the promise he made to mama. If it wasn't for that, he would've abandoned my ass as soon as he got the chance. I really am just some garbage that he found on the side of the road and he took pity on.

_I stayed in the Hall for a long time feeling sorry for myself. I stayed down there for the rest of the night and for the next day. By the time I finally went back to the other Halls it was time for me to get on with my studies. I acted like nothing had changed and if anyone noticed, they didn't say anything. I know that Larten and Arra noticed right away that something was wrong but after they exchanged a little almost knowing look. A few weeks later, they told me that Vancha was going to leave the mountain for a little while. __The news got my interest and I asked them which gate he was leaving from. When they said the main gate, I nodded and excused myself. I hurried to the main gate just in time to stop Vancha and ask him were he was going._

"_We need to hunt for some more meat," he told me after telling the others to go ahead without him._

"_Can I come?" I asked wanting to spend some time with him again._

_He shook his head. "You need to stay here and continue training but I give you my word that the next time I leave the Mountain, I'll bring you with."_

Like that means anything anymore,_ I thought._ Aren't you even going to ask me about the fight?

_I wanted to cry again when he didn't even mention the fight so I just nodded and as I watched him leave, I tried to force down the feeling of abandonment that was slowly starting to build inside me. When he came back a few hours later, I was waiting at the gate for him but he never even looked at me and he went on his way to the Hall of Princes. It wasn't until months later that I saw him again and by that time I truly felt abandoned and unwanted._

* * *

It was the sharp pain in my hands that brought me back to the walking world. At first I didn't know what was going on, but I soon saw Larten pulling the nails out of my hand. It was amazing that even though the nails were so hot when they went into me, they didn't fuse with the bones or anything. Another thing that surprised me was that even though my brain registered the pain, my body really didn't react to it.

"Where's Vancha?" I asked quietly as Larten used his nails to cut through the rope.

"Do not worry about him," Larten said removing the other nail and cutting the rope causing me to drop to the ground. "We need to leave. He will meet up with us later."

I wanted to stay but I knew that I was useless right now and I hated the feeling with everything in me so I just nodded. Larten bent over to help me to my feet but there was some movement that caught my attention. There was human with a knife behind him and as he threw it, way too fast to be human I realized, I pushed Larten away but I was too slow to move out of the way myself. The knife was coming right at me and it was thrown with true aim, it was aimed right at my heart.

Before I could even comprehend what was happening, someone tackled me from the side and we hit the ground hard. Because of my weakened state, at least that's what I hoped caused it and it wasn't because I really am that big of a wuss, I blacked out for a split second and when I got my sight back I saw that Vancha had shielded me with his body and that the knife was sticking out of his back.


	24. Chapter 24

**disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in this story, except for the OC and her mother whenever she pops up, the others belong to Darren Shan, the true master of horror.**

* * *

**Chapter 24**

As night finally fell, Vancha was anxious to start moving again but Larten was still asleep. He wanted to know what had happened to Amber and he wanted to know that she was alright but the echo's of her screams told him that he might not like what was waiting for him when he did. Vancha was almost to the point of wanting to kick Larten awake when the orange haired vampire finally sat up and looked at him.

"Did you get any sleep Sire?" he asked concerned.

"Not really," Vancha admitted. "But we need to find out what happened to Amber."

Larten nodded and a few minutes later they both entered what was once Amber's home.

Vancha and Larten had stayed in the forest on the outskirts of the village for the day so they had to reenter the village and when they did they could easily see something in the village center.

"What is that?" Vancha asked.

"It looks like a crucifix," Larten said. "And it looks like it was placed there recently."

"That's correct," a voice said that caused them to jump. "And just wait until you see the decoration that's been placed on it."

They both turned around and while Larten didn't know the man, Vancha recognized him instantly.

"What are you doing here Mitch?" Vancha demanded. "Shouldn't you be dead by now?"

"That hurts Vancha," Mitch said sounded wounded. "But I'll bet that that wasn't the first thing you said to Carolynn when you saw her."

"You leave her out of this," Vancha said as his features darkened. "You're the reason she's dead."

"Am I now?" Mitch asked. "Are you sure about that?"

Vancha was confused until he noticed a person walking up behind Mitch and Vancha couldn't believe what he saw, he didn't want to believe it, but there she was staring him in the face.

"It's been a long time Vancha," she said in a soft voice.

"Carolynn? But how is this possible?" Vancha asked. "I saw you die."

"That's what Amber said when she first saw me," Carolynn said sadly. "You two really are so much alike. But I guess that's to be expected."

"How are you here?" Vancha asked.

"Vancha?" Larten said.

"Not now."

"Vancha?"

"Seriously Larten, not now."

Larten sighed. "Sire, I think you might want to know this."

"What? What could be so important?"

"The 'decoration' on the cross is Amber," Larten stated.

Vancha turned toward him but he still didn't understand what Larten was saying.

"What?" Vancha asked still confused.

"It is Amber," Larten repeated. "Amber is the one on the cross."

Vancha looked at the cross again and he realized that he could see the outline of someone hanging there and his rage took over.

"What the hell did you do to her?" he demanded as he spun back towards Mitch.

"Well that surprise ended too soon," Mitch said. "And just before things got interesting too."

"You said that you wouldn't do anything to her," Carolynn said horrified.

"I lied," Mitch shrugged. "And that wasn't the only other thing I did."

"You bastard," Vancha snarled.

"Now Vancha, let's not get personal," Mitch smirked.

"I even got her to believe that you were abandoning her. She's fully convinced that you want nothing to do with her, just like you did in the Mountain. She has absolutely no faith in you anymore. She's all but mine now."

"She will never be yours!" Vancha shouted, but he wanted to know how Mitch had known about what had happened in the Mountain. He wanted to know how Mitch even knew about the Mountain

"We'll see."

Vancha wanted to leap forward and wipe that smug look off his face but he had to get to Amber. He knew that there was more than just the two in front of him but he wasn't exactly sure how many of them there were. As he was trying to figure out what to do Mitch said:

"Don't even think of doing anything smart Vancha. I have men positioned around Amber and if anything happens, all I have to do is give the signal and Amber will die."

Vancha cursed silently. Why couldn't he think of anything to do?

"Both of you drop all of your weapons," Mitch said.

"And if we don't?" Vancha asked.

He didn't really mean anything by it, he was just curious as to what would happen. So when Mitch made a small gesture and a gun went off causing a small puff of dust to form at the bottom of the cross, he knew that he had little choice but to do as Mitch said. He slipped his belts of throwing stars off and tossed them on the ground and he motioned for Larten to get rid of his weapons too. He could see what Larten thought about that but he did was he was told.

_When I give you the signal, you get Amber and I'll take care of the others,_ Vancha said telepathically._ We'll head for the Cirque from there._

_Very well Sire, _Larten said. _But are you sure you do not want to go get Amber yourself?_

_No. This just became personal._

Larten could almost feel Vancha's rage so he just gave a slight nod, knowing that the others wouldn't see it and he waited for Vancha's signal, whatever is was going to be. Larten had expected some subtle gesture like Mitch had made, but then again Vancha had never been one for subtly, so his idea of a gesture was to blindly charge forward using all of the speed that was available to him. Larten didn't move for a second as he shook his head in disbelief. Was Vancha ever going to learn, he asked himself? The answer was probably not.

Humans started to cry out in pain as Larten started to move. Vancha was already working fast so it was only a matter of time before Mitch was the only one left. By the time Larten had reached the cross, all had fallen silent again. Larten ignored the unnerving feeling that was starting to build. Vancha was on a blood lust and nothing was going to stop him until everyone was dead, or at least until Amber was safe. At least now Larten could see where Amber had gotten that from and he was starting to see that Amber really was Vancha's daughter, and Larten was a little jealous about this. Vancha was the only one in the clans history to actually have a daughter of his own.

Larten shook his head to clear it as he got to work freeing Amber. He grabbed one of the nails and gave it a strong pull, but the nail barely moved. Larten frowned. A nail shouldn't be this strong. After a few more seconds of pulling, the nail finally gave way and he pulled it out of Ambers hand. Larten was surprised to see that the nail was slightly red from more than just the blood that covered it. The nail was warmer than it should be and he soon understood what had happened to her.

_Poor child_, he thought. _No one deserves this kind of treatment, even if they are a hostage._

He knew that if he ever voiced that opinion out loud, Vancha would surly kill him without a second thought. As he thought this, Larten looked around for Vancha and found him back where he'd started and that he seemed to be talking to the women again and he couldn't help but wonder what they were talking about.

* * *

The rage that Vancha felt helped increase his speed as he headed towards those that were stationed around the village. The humans were easy to spot in more ways than one. For one thing, Vancha could hear their hearts beating in their chest. They were a clear indicator that these humans were scared and they were on edge about something, even if was just because they feared Mitch. Another thing was because of their fear they were sweating, so that was another clear indicator of where they were positioned. There was about ten of them and they were all within easy reach, especially for one of his skills in tracking.

Vancha was able to take out about three of them before they had even noticed that something was wrong, but by then it was too late. It was only a matter minutes before they all lay on the ground dead. Even though most of Vancha's anger had dissipated, he could still feel the residual effects it had had on him. Vancha had a clear view of the village center from here and he could see that while Larten seemed to be having a hard time dealing with the nails, both he and Amber were out of harm's way, at least for now. His gaze shifted to the spot where Mitch and Carolynn were standing, but Mitch was nowhere to be seen. Vancha really wasn't that surprised, Mitch had always been something of a coward so the fact that he had already fled didn't really mean anything.

Vancha made his way over to where Carolynn was, he had some questions that needed answers and she was the only one that could provide them. Carolynn saw Vancha approach but she didn't really seem that surprised when he stopped in front of her.

"I suppose I owe you some answers," she said. He nodded but said nothing.

"Amber really is our daughter," she said. "I never told you because I had only just found out myself. When I left, it was because Evanna told me it was the right thing to do and because I had been scared, I did what she said. Not too long after, I found out that you had been turned into a vampaneze like your brother and that you had left with him to be trained, but I didn't have time to think about that because Amber had just been born.

"Even from a young age, she was more like you than I had ever thought was possible. It was about three months after Amber was born that Kayla found us."

"Kayla?" Vancha asked. "Who's Kayla?"

"Kayla was my little sister. Or I should say my twin sister. You probably don't remember her but she used to follow us all the time when we were kids, at least until we sent her away."

Vancha remembered her, which was amazing considering how long ago this happened. But he also remembered that he had never really been bothered by the girl, she had been more annoying to her sister than she ever was to him.

"I'm not sure how she found us, but because I was still living with Evanna and because it was part of my destiny, there was nothing she could do to stop it from happening."

"But that still doesn't explain how you're still alive," Vancha said. "I was a human almost 200 years ago."

"When I left with Evanna," Carolynn explained. "She brought me to a different point in time. Otherwise this never would've been possible and you never would've known about Amber."

Vancha wanted to ask more questions but he got the feeling that something was wrong and he looked back to where Larten and Amber. Larten had gotten Amber off the cross and she was on the ground. Vancha saw someone, a vampire by the looks of him, sneaking up behind Larten with a knife. Vancha was moving before he even realized that he was. He saw the vampire throw the knife and he saw Amber push Larten out of the way, but he knew that she wouldn't be able to get herself out of the way.

As soon as he was close enough, he threw himself at Amber to shield her and he felt the knife enter his back. Because he had hit her while he was flitting, they landed on the ground hard and Amber almost passed out. As her eyes focused, Vancha could see her confusion, but that confusion soon turned into horror as she saw the knife. Vancha was able to move enough to get off her but he soon fell onto his side and Amber was next to him in an instant, her concern clear on her face and in her eyes.

"Vancha?" she said in a small scared voice.

Vancha hadn't heard that tone from her since she was little, not to long after they'd met. She had had that tone after she'd had a nightmare but didn't want him to know that she was really scared.

"Are you alright?" he asked her.

"Never mind me," she said trying to hide the small holes that were in her hands. "What about you?"

"I'm fine," he said as he sat up and almost fell again.

Amber placed her hands on his shoulders to keep him sitting up right.

"Stop trying to hide things from me," she said. "I know it's worse than it looks, Vancha. You can barely sit up, you're covered in sweat from the exertion you're using to keep yourself up, and you're paler than normal. How bad is it really?"

Vancha didn't want to tell her that it was very bad. He was almost certain that the knife had hit something vital.

"Vancha, answer me," Amber demanded. "How bad is it?"

Larten walked up behind Amber and he wrapped his cloak around her shoulders but she didn't even seem to feel it. Vancha looked at him and the two of them shared a look.

"You know where to take her," Vancha said and Larten nodded.

"What are you talking about?" Amber asked. "Take me where?"

Vancha looked at her. "Larten's going to take you somewhere safe for a while. You're to stay there with him until you're told otherwise."

"But-"

"No buts. I'm telling you as a prince that this is what you are to do."

Amber dropped her hands and her gaze but she still nodded.

Vancha was actually relieved. He had felt that she was going to continue arguing with him and then he was going to have to do something drastic about it.

"Good girl," he said softly as his eyes closed. "Remember to do as you're told."

Vancha fell forward and Amber caught him before he hit the ground.

"Vancha?" she said. "Vancha!? Are you ok? Vancha!"


	25. Chapter 25

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in this story, except for the OC and her mother, whenever her mother pops up. The others belong to Darren Shan, the true master of horror.**

* * *

**Chapter 25**

"Vancha? Dammit Vancha, answer me," I cried as tears trailed down my cheeks. "Please."

There was just no way this was really happening. But it was. I had learned a long time ago that life takes joy in making certain people miserable, and I was one of the prime targets. I was one of the ones to constantly be surrounded by a constant circle of death. Out of desperation I looked at Larten, hoping he would tell me that Vancha was fine, but he just shook his head.

I looked back at Vancha and I carefully pulled the knife from his back and tossed it away from me. I carefully placed Vancha on the ground and slowly got to my feet, starting off into the distance.

"What are we going to do now?" I asked.

For a while Larten was silent and when I looked back at him, I saw that he was looking at a woman that was approaching us. She was the ugliest woman that I had ever seen and she wore ropes instead of clothes, but that didn't change the fact that I knew who she was. I had heard stories about her and about how important she was to the clan, but I never thought that I would meet the famed Lady of the Wilds.

"Lady Evanna," Larten bowed politely as she drew nearer.

"Larten," she nodded. "Still as polite as always I see." She turned her gaze towards me. "And this must be Amber. You've grown since the last time I saw you."

I didn't know what to say so I just nodded politely but I couldn't help but notice that she avoided looking at the spot where Vancha lay.

"Why don't you two come with me?" she asked. "I have a camp nearby and you both could use some rest after everything that you've been through. Especially you Amber. And I'm sure you too have some questions for me to answer."

Without waiting for a reply, she turned and went back the way she came. I gave Larten a look but he just shrugged and gestured for me to follow. I clutched the cape closer to me and trailed after Evanna with Larten close behind me. After a few steps, I paused and glanced back at everything behind me and again I made a silent vow to get revenge on the man who had taken everything that I loved from me. Before I hurried off to follow Evanna and Larten I looked at where Vancha was laying.

"Even in death, may you be triumphant. Sire," I said as I made the death's touch sign.

* * *

Evanna had said that her camp was near, but after half a mile I was beginning to question if she could accurately measure distance the right way. She finally came to a stop outside a tent that easily blended in with the trees and forest around it. It would've been easy to miss if you weren't looking for it. Evanna led us inside and, though the tent was tiny looking from the outside, the tent proved to be a lot bigger on the inside. There was a fire burning in the center of the floor and the surrounding area was covered exotic looking rugs, couches covered with pillows, chairs of all kinds, and there was even a curtained off area that looked like it might lead to a large bedroom, though it was hard to tell from here. There was even a candle lit chandler hanging from the ceiling, which cast a warm glow over everything the light touched.

As I looked at everything around me, Evanna told me to follow her and for Larten to stay where he was. Larten nodded and took a seat on the couch, looking perfectly at home here. I followed Evanna through the curtain into what I had thought was a bedroom and, as it turns out, I had been right. Evanna took me into a far back corner that had also been curtained off and she pulled the curtain aside to reveal a bathtub that was filled with hot water.

"Once you're cleaned off and warmed up, I'll heal your hands and your damaged skin," she said.

"Thank you, Lady Evanna," I said. "But…"

"There's nothing for you to worry about child," she soothed. "You're in a safe place now. No one else knows where you and Larten are."

I nodded and she left to give me some privacy. I let the cloak slip from my shoulders and I carefully took of what was left of what I had been wearing before carefully getting into the water. It was the perfect temperature and I soon felt myself relaxing, despite my worries. After a few minutes, Evanna returned and she washed my hair, just like my mother, if that's who she was, did. The soap even smelled the same. It was a weird situation for me, but I sat still while she did it and soon she was rinsing out my hair.

"You look a lot like your mother," she commented.

"I'm really not sure who my mother is anymore," I said softly, turning to look at her. "Can you tell me who she really was?"

Evanna was quiet for a moment before telling me to give her my hands. I did and she applied some soft lotion before muttering something strange under her breath. The lotion warmed up slightly and then she told me to rinse them off. I stuck my hands back into the water and when I pulled them up, it was like the whole cross incident had never happened. But that wasn't the only thing that had gotten my attention. I looked at the rest of my body and saw that not only were some of my more recent wounds looked like they had never happened either, and that included the sunburn. I stared at my skin in amazement.

"Thank you, Lady Evanna," I said again as she handed me a towel. "Thanks for everything."

"Dry yourself off," she ordered and handed me a pile of cloths too. "And change into these."

She left again and I quickly got out of the tub and toweled myself off before I glanced at the cloths. On top was a purple shirt and the color reminded me of Vancha's cape that he liked to wear, the soft one made of rabbit hides. While purple was my favorite color, mostly because of Vancha, the sight of the color saddened and depressed me.

_It's all my fault,_I thought again. _If only I had listened to Vancha he wouldn't be…_

I shook the thought away before I realized that I had already dressed myself. _When had I don't that?_ I wondered but decided that it wasn't worth the effort. I picked Larten's cape off the ground and decided that I was going to wash it later before giving it back to him. I placed it on the side of the tub and walked out from behind the certain. There was food and different kinds of drinks placed on a small table in front of Larten, who was still sitting on the couch. He looked up as I entered and for a while he didn't say anything as he looked at me. I was dressed entirely in purple and I even had my long dark hair tied back so that it was off of my face. Evanna had given me a purple shirt that was so long it went down to my knees, a pair of purple leggings and even purple boots that came half way up my shins. I even had a purple belt that was around my waist that made the shirt appear to be a dress, which I wasn't really crazy about. I hated dresses.

"You look better," he said eventually and I nodded. "Evanna has left for the day but she said to help yourself to the food."

Again I nodded and I looked at what was offered to eat. There were fruits and vegetables of all kinds, prepared in ways that were both strange and bizarre to me while others were familiar and comforting. Many of them were steamed, while others were boiled or baked, and many of them were still raw. There was one thing in particular that got my interest. It was a yellow fruit that had small spikes on it and it was shape like a sea urchin but it was a little longer than an urchin. I picked it up and was about to crack it open when Larten said: "You do not want to open that."

"Why not?" I asked looking at him.

"Just trust me, you do not want to open that."

"But it's just a fruit. What's the worst that can happen?"

"If you insist on opening it, then at least wait until I am outside," he said as he got up and headed to the tent entrance.

_That was weird,_I thought as I watched him leave. _It's just a fruit, nothing bad is going to happen…Right?_

I used one of my nails and cut into the fruit. The shell of the fruit was harder than I thought it would be and it took me a few tries to even crack the thing, but as soon as I did, I was hit with the foulest smell imaginable. The smell was almost as bad as, if not worse than, a dead body that had been left out in the sun for three weeks and had been feasted on by animals who had dragged the entrails out into the sun. I dropped the fruit and I ran outside where I fell to my knees and was violently sick a few times. I thought that I had finished when a horrible memory of when my village was attacked and the strong smell of death and decay was all around me. After I was done retching, I heard Larten walk up behind me.

"Was it worth it?" he asked innocently as I tried to get the foul taste out of my mouth.

"What the hell was that!?" I demanded. I had retched had retched so hard, tears were sliding down my cheeks and my nose was running. I knew I looked pathetic but I really didn't care.

"The next time I tell you not to do something, are you going to listen to me?"

"Yes! But what the hell was that?"

"It is called a durian fruit and it is one of the worst smelling and tasting fruit on the planet," he gave me a small smile. "Most sensible vampires are not stupid enough to even think about trying to eat one for the reasons you just experienced."

I glared at him as I stood up but I didn't say anything for a few seconds. I used one of my sleeve to wipe my nose and the other one to wipe the tears from my eyes and face.

"How long until the smell goes away?" I eventually asked.

"That depends on how quickly you get back in there and take it out."

"Why don't you go get it?" I asked with an attitude.

He gave me a smug look. "Because I was not the one who was dumb enough to try to eat it."

I grumbled as I went back inside and quickly grabbed the nasty thing from the floor before going to the entrance of the tent and threw it, purposely trying to hit Larten. But he dodged it at the last second, of course he did. He would never give me the satisfaction of actually hitting him.

"Feel better?" he asked.

"I would have if it would've actually hit you," I said as I turned and walked back inside.

Larten followed me in and before too long we were both sitting on the couch eating, though I asked him what some different things were before I even attempted to eat them, much to his amusement.

* * *

The sun was starting to rise as we finished eating and before long I grabbed one of the cushions from the couch and curled up on one of the rugs on the floor. Larten told me that I could sleep on the couch but I was perfectly content sleeping on the floor, I was used it anyway. I waited until I was sure he was asleep before I got up and walked back behind the curtain to wash his cape but it was gone. I looked around and I spotted it hanging up in a corner already drip drying.

_OK __that's just weird,_I thought. _I know that there's no one else here so who did this?_

I carefully looked around to see if there was anyone nearby but I never saw anyone in here. I shrugged and returned to my bed and I lay down to try to sleep but as soon as I did, my thoughts returned to Vancha and how his death was entirely my fault.

_If I hadn't tried to go after my sword, I didn't even know where it was right now, he'd be alive. If I'd just stayed in the mountain, he'd be alive. If I'd just done what he said, he'd be alive. If I hadn't been so stupid as to think that I knew better than Vancha, he'd still be alive. If I hadn't been so stubborn, he'd still be alive. If I'd just… There were so many 'ifs' that I could've done to prevent this from happening but everything still came down to it was all my fault._

These were the thoughts that entered my mind and it was these thoughts that prevented me from falling asleep at all that day. When night came around and Larten woke up, I had to act like nothing was wrong. Larten looked at me and I was sure that he'd noticed that I was slightly off but if he did, he didn't say anything like normal. Before long, Evanna came back without a word to where she had been, but apparently that was normal, and she was soon telling Larten and I all that she could about my mother and how events unfolded the way they did.


	26. Chapter 26

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the character is this story, except for the OCs, the others belong to Darren Shan, the true master of horror.**

* * *

**Chapter 26**

"Destiny has always had things in mind for your mother," Evanna started by saying.

Amber was sitting on the floor and Larten was sitting in what was starting to become his normal spot on the couch. Both of them were listening intently to what Evanna had to say and while he would never admit it, Larten was about as curious as Amber was about the things that had happened. Evanna continued as she looked at Amber.

"You were told at some point that Vancha hadn't been born in the same village as your mother, didn't you?" Amber nodded. "Vancha's parents had been killed when he was a baby and I took care of him for a while before finding him a home in your mother's village. Even at a young age Vancha and your mother were close. Vancha has always been wild but he was even wilder when he was younger. He constantly getting into trouble, but he was cleaver enough to figure his way out of any mess he got himself into, that was one of the things that drew your mother to him."

"And who was she?" Amber asked. "Who was my mother?"

Larten glanced at her and saw that she was hugging one of the pillows from the couch. He hadn't seen her this insecure since he had first met her and he tried to imagine what she was feeling right now. Larten himself knew the dangers of looking back on the past, he had a troubled and dangerous past himself, but he couldn't even begin to try to understand how she felt or what was going through her head. All he knew was that she was tired and that fact alone was taking its toll on her.

"Your mother had a twin sister," Evanna explained, though she ignored the 'no duh' look Amber was giving her. "And both of them had feelings for Vancha, and even though Kayla loved Vancha more, he asked Carolynn to marry him. Kayla was beside herself with jealousy. She felt that she had been betrayed by both of them. She felt that her sister had stolen her rightful place and she set out to ruin her sister's life.

"Kayla knew that Mitch had wanted to marry Carolynn, and she used that knowledge to her advantage. Kayla set things up so that way Mitch knew when Carolynn was alone and he could make his move to kill her. The plan would've worked if I hadn't stepped in when I did. It was one of the few times I could have an active role in someone's destiny, and I prevented Mitch from killing her.

"I transported him to a different point in time, to a place I thought he couldn't do any harm, but apparently I was mistaken. I took Carolynn with me and I brought her to a safe place between times, a place where time flowed slowly, so she could have her baby, have you, in relative safety and at that point, Kayla went into hiding."

"Well, it obviously wasn't safe," Amber said with a complete lack of emotion. "I was taken from Carolynn after all."

Larten looked at her with an eyebrow raised but she ignored him and kept looking at Evanna, waiting for her to say something. Larten had been watching Amber for some time now, trying to judge her reaction to what she was being told, but the more she was told the less any kind of expression surfaced, she didn't even show any kind of body language.

"Besides," Amber continued in the same flat tone. "If this really was so traumatic for them, why didn't Vancha even try to find out what happened to Carolynn? Did he even care?"

Larten looked back at Evanna, as he too, waited for an answer. Evanna was silent for a while, like she was deciding how much to tell.

"Vancha did care," she said slowly. "He searched for Carolynn, for both of them, for a while, but his attention was forced to focus in a different direction before too long. I believe you know the cause of this Amber."

"Yeah I know," Amber snapped. "But if he really cared, not even that would've stopped him. He turned his back on us. He should've been more eager to find answers now that he had more time."

Larten was confused as to what they were talking about, but he decided it was safer not to ask. The last thing he wanted right now was Amber turning her rage against him. Evanna regarded Amber with a calm expression but that only seemed to make her angrier.

"What about Kayla then?" Amber demanded. "If you and Carolynn were in such a safe place, how did she find you?"

"I'm afraid I can't tell you that."

"And why the hell not?!" Amber demanded leaping to her feet.

Evanna just shook her head and Amber looked like she was going to attack her. Larten got ready to step in to prevent that from happening but instead of attacking, Amber just stormed out of the tent. Larten sat there slightly confused and he moved to get up.

"Leave her alone Larten," Evanna said. Larten looked at her. "She needs time to be by herself and think about everything she's been told."

Larten wanted to ask if all of that was really true, it was hard to believe that Vancha would turn his back on something like that. The Vancha he knew would always dedicate himself completely to whatever he was doing, regardless of what was happening around him. The only thing that stopped Larten from asking was that he knew that Evanna only spoke the truth whenever she talked.

Instead, he decided to ask, "Are you sure it is wise to leave her be? Even if we are currently out of danger for the time being, trouble always has a way of finding her."

Evanna nodded. "She needs to carefully go over all the things that have happened to her lately. She needs to decide how she's going to proceed from here, how to come to terms with the past and the decisions she's made."

Larten nodded. He had gone through the same thing at one point. It was a necessary evil that almost every vampire had to go through at one point or another in their lives, some more than others. It helped them get a better understanding of themselves and their choices. It was a path that can only be walked alone, no matter how much one just wants someone to tell them what the next step was. Something else became clear to him.

"The first time I met you, you started to tell Vancha that he should never have turned his back on something. Was this what you were talking about?"

Evanna nodded silently. "That was one of the biggest regrets in his life. Vancha blamed himself for not being able to do anything for Carolynn sooner and for not knowing about Amber. He felt that if he had known, he would've tried harder to find them."

They both sat in silence for a long time and it started to get light before Evanna spoke again.

"I will leave you to get some sleep, I have things to do today but before I go I will tell you this," she said. He looked at her and waited for her to continue. "You're going to need to keep a close watch on her for a while. Amber will do things you would never expect out of her."

Larten didn't understand what she meant by that and he tried to get her to reveille more but she would say nothing else about the matter and soon she was gone, leaving him with the only option of getting some sleep.

In the weeks that followed, Amber was talking less and less. She no longer looked at Larten when he talked and when he asked her a question all she did was shrug in response. They had left Evanna not to long after Amber had returned two nights later, not even saying where she'd been, but she was already starting to withdraw into herself. Amber, when she'd returned, looked like she was trying to make sense of something and while he wanted to ask what it was about, Larten knew that if it was important, Amber would ask in her own time. Larten just had to wait until she was ready to talk.

When they had left, Evanna again told Larten to keep a close watch on Amber and as the two of them walked down the small deserted road, he couldn't help but wonder what he was supposed to be watching for and why Evanna had told him, not once but twice, to keep an eye on her. Larten had glanced at Amber but she was too lost in her thoughts to even notice that he was watching her.

They reached a small town to rest in for the day. They stopped at the small inn, it was more like a small hole in the wall, and it didn't have many comforts or an inviting atmosphere. They got two rooms that were connected by paper thin dividing walls that didn't block out any sound.

Somehow able to block out the noises from the two humans in the room next to him, which was a miracle given the amount of noise the two of them were creating, Larten fell asleep only to be waken around mid-day by Amber as she paced around her room for about ten minutes before her door opened and she crept down the hall. Larten wondered where she was going, seeing as she was now more or less under his care, but when she returned that night she offered no information as to where she had been.

For the next few weeks, Amber settled into the pattern of sleeping for a few hours before pacing around and then leaving wherever they were staying and returning at night without a word. Larten also noticed that she had taken to walking ahead of him and, though it seemed like she was just going to random places, she seemed to be looking for something. Larten tried to get her to talk to him, but she would either look blankly at him or she would just flat out ignore him entirely. After a while he just gave up. If she wanted to talk, he decided, she would do it in her own time. He just had to be patient and wait for her to open up.

One night, as they walked down a large busy road, Larten decided he was going to follow Amber to discover what she did when he slept. Lately she had been returning to her room before he had a chance to see her and thought she tried to hide it, she smelled like blood and lots of it. At first Larten had thought it was because she was feeding, but he soon discovered that this wasn't the case. Amber was starting to get really pale and she was starting to lose her strength and stamina. She was avoiding feeding and it was time he found out why.

When they stopped for the day, Larten went to sleep as soon as he could and when Amber woke up about two and a half hours later, he waited until she had left her room and started to walk down the hall before he got up and followed. Larten moved silently so as to not give himself away, an easy feat for him because of his training as a General. Larten had momentarily worried about having to be in the sun for a long period of time, but his mind was soon put to rest as he saw Amber walk down a dark ally. Amber stuck to empty allies. Larten stayed as close to the sides of the buildings as he could, trying his best to ignore how bright and painful it was, but he forced himself to endure it as he trailed behind Amber.

After a while, Amber led Larten deeper into town. The buildings around them started to wither and decay until all that was left were the shells of what the buildings had once been. The windows were dusty and dirty while others were cracked and broken and others yet were missing sections of the structures themselves. It was amazing that many of these buildings were still standing on their own and while many had signs that forbade entry, there were some that were inhabited by the humans that were unwanted by society. The poor and the deformed mostly resided here, but there were also drug users and dealers as well as some thieves and wanted men and women from everywhere and from all levels of society, all banding together to survive.

Amber ignored them as she walked through the streets and continued on for another block and a half. Larten stayed in the shadows as she examined a building before walking through the once boarded up door. Larten waited a few moments before he entered the building as well. The interior was as bad as he exterior, if not worse. There were holes everywhere making walking hazardous, there were support beams everywhere, and there was even shattered glass from windows and bottles. Larten carefully stepped over a large pool of water that dripped from the many holes in the ceiling and skirted around some of the beams before he became aware of the fact that he had lost sight of Amber. Before he could curse himself for such a careless mistake, he heard the rise and fall of voices nearby. Moving carefully along a wall, Larten got as close to the voices as he could.

Judging by the sounds of movement in the room, there were four people plus Amber and they were trying to talk each other into doing something. After a few moments of arguing with each other, though Amber stayed quiet the whole time, a girl spoke up: "Fine then. I guess I'll start seeing as the rest of you are too afraid too. Who has the knife?"

There was some slight movement, like someone leaning forward and Larten looked around the corner to see what was happening but there was a boy blocking his view. He did however catch the reflection of the knife the girl was holding and soon there was a slight scent of blood in the air.

"That's better," the girl sighed contently. "Alright, who's next?" No one answered. "Come on you cowards. We all agreed to do this. Now, who's next?"

"What about the new girl?" asked the boy in front of Larten. "She still has to do it to prove that she's really one of us."

"Butt out," Amber said in a dark voice. "Every time you even look at the knife you get all pale and sweaty. You have no right to judge me Keith."

"Shut up!" the boy, Keith, snapped.

"Are you afraid of the knife," she taunted. "Or are you afraid of the blood?"

"I said shut up!"

Larten tried again to see around the corner, and this time he was successful. Keith had taken a step towards Amber, who was standing near a window, and he could see the grin on her face from where he stood.

"Go ahead," she continued to taunt. "Hit me. Just remember that it'll be the last thing you ever do."

"I'm not afraid of you," Keith said.

"Sure you're not," she agreed. "But then why did you stop? Why are you trembling? Pale? Sweaty? Why aren't you looking me in the face anymore?"

Keith didn't answer, he was paralyzed with fear and he couldn't move even if he wanted to.

Larten couldn't understand why Amber was acting like this, this wasn't her at all. Amber never liked to be around people she didn't know, either human or vampire, but even when she had to be, she was never like this.

Amber stood in the light of the window grinning like a psychopath. The way the light fell on her, half of her face was covered in shadows and Larten could almost feel how the atmosphere had changed around her.

"What do you want?" a boy asked.

"Information," Amber said plainly, not taking her eyes off Keith. "You give me the information that I want and in return you get to keep your puny miserable lives."

"Why should we tell you?" a different boy asked. "What's the worst you can do to any of us?"

Amber looked at him and tilted her head slightly. "You really don't want to know the answer to that," she said.

"I doubt that," the girl said as she and the two boys circled Amber. "In case you haven't noticed, you're clearly out numbered."

"Yet you're the ones who are clearly out matched."

To the humans, it seemed like Amber had just turned around, but Larten saw it all. Amber lunged at them with all of her speed and, using just her nails, she killed all three of them in a second and Keith was the only one still standing. He looked at the bodies of those around him, at his so called friends, and at the blood that was starting to pool around them before he raised his tear filled eyes back up.

Amber turned back and looked at him with a blank expression on her face before she started walked towards Keith. Keith tried to take a step backwards but his legs could no longer support him and he fell to his knees. Amber stopped in front of him and picked him up by the front of his shirt.

"Start talking," she said. "Or you'll be next."

"I-I-I d-don't kn-know what y-you wa-want." The boy was completely terrified of the girl, of the monster, that had a hold of him and he desperately looked around for help.

Larten couldn't believe what he had seen. Amber killed those humans for no reason, at least not one that he could see. He had never seen this side of her before. So devoid of emotion, of anything, and he didn't know what to do. If he just ran out there, Amber would more than likely kill him on the spot, but if she continued, word would reach Vampire Mountain. It would reach the princes and they would send someone to pass judgment on her and most likely kill her.

Since she was more or less his responsibility right now, his good standing would be destroyed and everything he had worked for and accomplished would be ripped away from him. He would be cast out in shame, forbidden to ever step foot in the mountain ever again. Larten shook his head. He couldn't think of himself right now. He had to stop Amber no matter what happened.


End file.
